


The Understudy

by Fizzleup



Series: Going with the Punches [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Bara Sans (Undertale), Blue is not well, Ecto-Penis (Undertale), Ecto-Tongue (Undertale), F/M, M/M, Reader Is Not Chara (Undertale), Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Reader is male, Reverse Harem, WARNING- May ruin reading future Undertale Reverse Harem stories
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2020-11-07 15:44:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 72,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20819807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fizzleup/pseuds/Fizzleup
Summary: Tiffany Loves was nice and pretty, looking for a place to rent a room while attending college to be an artist.  She finds herself staying at a mansion with eight skeletons and becoming friends with all them.  In fact thanks to soul bonds she has become a lot closer then friends to them…This story though is a lot less about her and more about a certain assistant, the student majoring in engineer at the same college and assisting Sans in fixing his machine.  His also nice as far as he knows, not bad looking, but never the focus of much attention.  The stand-by friend for skeletons when Tiffany was too busy.  He was ok with it because one specific skeleton appeared to like him a lot and he liked them very much as well.But then he finds out he was second fiddle even with that one skeleton compared to Tiffany.  He leaves the assistant job swearing to have nothing to do with skeletons.  Something goes horribly wrong with the machine though and nothing is going to be the same again.  A little twist on the typical reverse-harem story.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warning- This story may potentially ruin reading all future Reverse Harem Undertale stories. 
> 
> This story will start out with a future scene of things to come for the protagonist before actually starting at the real beginning.
> 
> Now with warning aside, if you like my writing, I'm also writing a Hero Academia fanfiction called Hindsight. Enjoy the story!

You knew talking to yourself was a sign of you really needing to be more social. 

“Let’s run the simulation again only this time tweak the algorithm just a bit,” you muttered, yawning as you typed on your keyboard. Your computer easily ran the program, the best computer equipment you ever laid eyes on. Honestly it seemed a little wasteful, there was nothing wrong with the old computer. But you supposed it gave the other skeletons a peace of mind to have the newest equipment used.

Getting the machine rebuilt might have been the first step, but they needed to figure out what went wrong before they could undo the damage.

“Well we know what went wrong… just not exactly what they did,” you muttered, watching the numbers and graphs play out on your monitor. It struck you then how out of your league you were with this situation. You were majoring for engineering for God’s sake, hadn’t even finished your degree yet. You were going to have to talk to the skeletons about extending their circle of trust and get some more brains on this. 

It was no longer a project with no deadline. Time was a factor since they didn’t know what could be happening to the others. Of course explaining recent events to other engineers and scientists would sound like something out of a sci-fi movie.

You took a moment to survey the living room you were working in. Broken and burnt circuitry lying on clear plastic sheets, laying everywhere. The guest house space was really being pushed to its limits. Probably would have made more sense to have all this at the mansion, but no way was that happening. Your return came with a couple of requirements, one being how you would do most of your work at the guest house away from the others. A big change from how things used to go, but then everything changed…

Knock, Knock!

You found yourself tensing. There was no reason for anyone to be visiting you tonight. The discussion of your work was supposed to happen first thing in the morning. And after taking a second to think, you realized you recognized the knock itself. Only one monster made a knock sound like the intro of a song.

You found yourself instantly looking at your t-shirt and jeans, slightly wrinkled, then cursed yourself for even caring how you looked. 

“None of that stuff matters now, it never really did in the first place,” you muttered to yourself as you got up. You walked towards the door, instinctively slowing your steps. Some part of you not wanting to open it, just wait and hope the skeleton on the other side would go away. Trying to mentally shake your nerves off, you took a deep breath and turned the doorknob.

There stood Blue, a couple of inches taller than you, appearing stout and large. Physically intimidating if it weren’t for the gentle face. Had his blue bandana tied around his neck as always, underneath it was a black shirt, blue leather jacket, and jeans. Your brain instantly latched onto details you wished didn’t pop in your head. 

Normally Blue always wore his armor, ever since a certain someone said it made him dashing. It’s been months since he wore normal clothes and you could count on your hand the number of times he wore the leather jacket. The one you bought him as a present when-

“GREETINGS BOYFRIEND!”

_I’m sorry, say WHAT?_

“Um what did you just say?” you asked, figuring your mind was playing tricks on you. Blue rolled his cyan eyes, smile not leaving his face.

“JEEZ THEY REALLY ARE WORKING YOU HARD, I SAID GREETINGS OF COURSE!”

“Yeah I um meant the word after-“

“NOW PLEASE CLOSE YOUR EYES,” Blue said, shifting from foot to foot. That’s when you realized the monster was holding something behind his back. It was really too late to play games, but you closed your eyes. Blue didn’t need you stressing him out considering what he went through. Regardless of the history you two had, you were actually glad to see him getting his cheerful demeanor back.

You felt something placed in your hands.

“OK YOU CAN OPEN YOUR EYES NOW!”

You followed the request, finding yourself looking down at a watch, a very expensive watch from the looks of it. It was a combination of gold and blue steel, the colors matching together perfectly. Set to the exact time and probably cost a lot more than the leather jacket you bought him.

“Blue I can’t really accept this,” you said, tensing as you spoke the words. You didn’t want to upset him, he was in a fragile state. At the same time though taking something like this from him felt wrong.

“I KNOW YOUR NOT BIG ON ANNIVERSARIES, BUT I REALLY WANTED US TO CELEBRATE BOYFRIEND.”

Ok now you did hear the word clearly and it produced all sorts of emotions, nothing good. Bewilderment, anger, and even a little fear ran through your head.

“Why are you calling me that?”

In the end you decided to seek understanding, but a part of you said there wasn’t going to be any logical explanation for any of this.

“BOYFRIEND ARE YOU OK? I THINK I'LL TALK TO THE OTHERS ABOUT GIVING YOU A BREAK,” Blue said, hand placed on your shoulder and giving it a squeeze. The squeeze was followed by him lowering his head, so casual about entering your personal space. You were stepping back a couple of steps before you even recognized what you were doing.

“We aren’t… we were never… you never wanted to be that!”

You were shaking slightly, almost dropping your ‘gift’ in the process. This was too much, it hurt too much. Blue finally stopped smiling, frowning as he noticed your shaking.

“I.. I’ve Upset You Somehow Boyfriend. I Must Be Doing Something Wrong. I’ll Let You Rest, but Please Keep The Gift. It’s My One Month Anniversary Gift To You”

“One month anniversary,” you repeated dumbly. You knew this somehow related to his loss, to his pain at what he suffered. You just weren’t sure how.

“OF COURSE, THE ONE MONTH ANNIVERSARY SINCE WE CONFESSED OUR FEELINGS TO EACH OTHER.”

BOOM!

You slammed the door, harder than you probably ever slammed any door before. You’d swear the hinges nearly popped off. The watch falling to the floor as you shakily turned the lock on. You paused there waiting, nearly holding your breath as you listened on the other side. Finally after almost a full minute, you heard Blue walking away. 

It took another minute before you also moved, grabbing the watch from the floor. You placed it on the kitchen counter and went straight for the phone. You called the head of the skeleton family, knowing he’d answer right away once he saw you on caller id.

“Hey there… no I didn’t find anything new. I’m calling because I have a new requirement for my services. I… I’ll tell you more later, but to put it simply- a new requirement for me being here is having Blue go to therapy.”

You were asked for details behind your request but kept the conversation short. You were tired, you were going to sleep, you would talk to him tomorrow about why you insisted on this. After hanging up the phone, you walked over and picked up your ‘one month anniversary gift’.

“What’s going on with him?” you asked the watch, not really expecting an answer back. Blue had only been half right, it was a month since something significant happened. It was a month since you did confess your feelings to Blue… and he ripped your heart out.

“Thank you! This is so lovely!”

“WHY OF COURSE, ONLY THE BEST FOR MY LADY,” Black said with a grin, taking a pose. Tiffany stared down at the pendant, an amethyst finely cut in the center of it. She put it on with a grin, followed by a kiss on Black’s cheek. The skeleton’s cheeks turned deep purple.

It was obvious from the way he waited in the living room he couldn’t wait to surprise her with the gift. Out of all the skeletons he was probably the most… materialistic. Oh sure she got gifts from others, but Black was the one who went for high dollar jewelry and clothing to give her. And sometimes, maybe she gave a little direction to the gift given, like how yesterday she mentioned a classmate wearing the prettiest pendant. 

You would never know she was someone whose income came from online art commissions and baby-sitting jobs with the way she dressed. Blouses and shirts worth over a hundred dollars because Black and also Edge would insist she wear the best. And she was always getting to eat the best foods because one of the skeletons insisted on going to really nice places. Speaking of food…

“Can you excuse me Black, I need to talk to Papyrus about our spaghetti date,” Tiffany said with a wink. The skeleton’s grin stifled slightly, but came back in full force.

“OF COURSE MY LADY, LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED ANYTHING FURTHER FROM ME,” Black said doing a bow. She giggled as she curtsied in return. She had a strong suspicion he took up the chivalry behavior up a notch around her, but she loved it. Made her think she was in a medieval time being treated as a princess. It was even better when Blue came around, dressed in his awesome armor.

“Of course m’lord! Good day to you,” Tiffany said with a wave before heading to the kitchen. She was glad he didn’t make a fuss about not getting more attention. All the skeletons were starting to understand she only had so much time on her hands. She credited it with the soul blonds she shared with them.

She found the tall skeleton looking through a recipe book. She could still remember when she walked him through how to properly make spaghetti. It took a week, but the lessons finally stuck. A necessary move since his first serving of spaghetti nearly got her food sickness. Luckily Sans helped make her food disappear with a short cut just like his own. (Y/N) wasn’t so lucky and ended up repeatedly throwing up that night and the following day.

“Getting ready for our spaghetti date?” Tiffany asked teasingly as she tickled Papyrus’s ribs. The skeleton jumped slightly, orange blush showing up on cheek bones.

“AH TIFFANY, I WAS ACTUALLY GOING TO TRY A NEW RECIPLE. I FOUND THIS CHICKEN SALAD RECIPE I KNOW YOU’LL LOVE,” Papyrus said with a wide smile. Uh-oh, looks like someone was expanding outside their comfort zone. Which was fine when she had Sans as backup to sneak bad food away, but no way was she risking it on a solo date with Paps.

“Papyrus I was REALLY looking forward to spaghetti though. I mean you’re the spaghetti making genius. Could we please have spaghetti this time?” Tiffany asked, placing one hand on her heart and fluttering her eyelashes. She had the pose down to a science and it worked every time on most of the skeletons. 

“WELL I… WOULDN’T WANT TO DISAPPOINT YOU! OF COURSE I’LL MAKE MY DELICOUS SPAGHETTI!” Papyrus said, raising one finger to the air. Crisis averted, she leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

“Thank you Papyrus, I know it’ll taste wonderful,” Tiffany said, not noticing the slight slump in shoulders as she turned and headed out the kitchen. She did feel a slight pang of guilt as she left the kitchen. A small part of her wanted Papyrus to protest, to not give in so… easily. It was the way of things with all the skeletons though. They never refused her when she wanted something different done. It was like she was Snow White and they were the seven dwarves.

Sticking to the said reference, she decided to head upstairs to see Grumpy (Red). To make small talk of course… and mention the date with Papyrus just to see his reaction. All the other skeletons acted totally ok with her speaking about their cousins and brothers, what fun times she was going to have with them and so forth. Red still though got flustered and jealous when she so much as mentioned another skeleton.

“Red you there?” Tiffany asked with a grin, knocking on the door.

“Come on in sweetheart.”

The baritone sound of his voice always made Tiffany shiver. Much to her shame she almost wanted to cancel the date happening just to hang out with Red at Grillby’s bar. Papyrus was a sweet ray of sunshine, but Red made parts of her tingle with excitement both inside and outside the bedroom.

“I just wanted to talk, how are things going?” Tiffany asked as she jumped onto bed next to Red and leaned against him. She always enjoyed how big and warm the skeletons were, she could feel the heat coming off Red’s ribs as she leaned against him.

“Almost got all the parts for my Road King in the garage babe. You’re going to love it when I put it together,” Red said with a toothy grin.

_Road King? Oh he means the motorcycle, wait I think I’m supposed to call it a chopper._

“Ooohh I can’t wait! I’m going to love how it feels when I’m holding you and we’re speeding down the road,” Tiffany said, maybe laying it on a little thick. She actually wasn’t crazy about motorcycles, but she could fake liking them for Red’s sake.

“Why wait on the holding part? You can hold me tonight and ride me. Promise it’ll feel even better then being on my bike,” Red whispered soft and low, putting a large arm around her waist and giving her a squeeze.

“Red please, I don’t know how to respond when you say things like that,” Tiffany said, turning her eyes to the floor. She knew he liked it when she suddenly acted shy and uncertain. Didn’t matter they had sex more times then she could count, he always fell for the whole ‘I’m practically a virgin’ act.

“Come on babe, I’ll make you feel good tonight,” Red said, voice promising all sorts of pleasures. She pulled away, no real fear in him not letting go.

“I’m sorry, but I have a date with Papyrus tonight,” Tiffany said, putting a hand to her heart. 

“You don’t say…”

And there it was, something which got Tiffany even more excited then his sexy voice. The hands squeezing into fists, the red eyes glowing and the teeth grinding. He had no muscles technically, but she’d swear somehow the arms flexed under his jacket. Maybe his bones just got larger when he got agitated. Still it was a sight she never got tired of, seeing him looking ready to pounce on someone and pound them for taking her time away from him. 

“Oh yes, his going to make spaghetti and we’re going on a picnic to…”

She continued talking for ten minutes, acting totally oblivious to how his hands continue to clench and he shifted on the bed. Finally, she decided to stop when she noticed he was poking holes in the blanket. If she didn’t leave soon he’d be ripping the mattress apart and no way could she keep the act up if that happened. She gave a quick goodbye as she headed out.

This was a good time to get ready. She had to look her best for the date with Papyrus. First though she stopped in front of another door, this one Blue’s bedroom. She pulled out an envelope and slid it under the door, knowing he was out doing errands. She had rewritten the letter five times before she was satisfied with it. Making sure it noted how she yearned for the monster and deep down always had feelings for him which she couldn’t fight anymore. Ok, maybe some of it was made up, but love letters weren’t supposed to be totally honest anyway.

And she was developing feelings for the guy now, it wasn’t her fault those said feeling only started happening a couple of days ago. It was (Y/N)’s fault really, he shouldn’t have made it so hard to find alone time with Blue. And this was for the best, (Y/N) would only be taking Blue away from his family if they got even more serious. It only made sense for her, the girl already soul bonded with the others, also be linked to Blue and they all live happily ever after.

“I really can’t get fairy tales out of my head today,” Tiffany said with a giggle as she approached her room.


	2. The Other Perspective

“Hey Papyrus, how’s the chicken salad turning out?” you asked, walking in the kitchen as you stretched. It took six months, but it looks like all those long hours of work were finally going to be paid off. The machine was finally repaired and San’s sounded certain he had the right algorithms to undo what was nicknamed the Incident. The moment when the same said machine pulled a whole bunch of alternate timeline skeletons in this universe and then exploded. Papyrus had his back turned, scarf sliding along the armor.

“YOU ARE MISTAKEN HUMAN, I AM ACTUALLY MAKING SPAGHETTI,” Papyrus said with his back still turned, attention solely focused on the pasta boiling. You almost sighed, after all these months you were still the ‘human’ and never heard Papyrus call you by name. 

“Oh sorry, I thought you said-“

“-HUMAN I CAN SEE YOU STILL DON’T KNOW THE INTRICACIES OF DATING, BUT SOMETIMES ONE MUST ADAPT FOR THEIR DATE,” Papyrus said, stirring the bowl. You knew the ‘intricacies of dating’ just fine, you were dating now for crying out loud… well if you consider going out in secret and telling no one the stuff you do together dating. You were suddenly feeling depressed and knew you had to talk to Blue tonight. No more holding it off. Tiffany was able to share feelings and declarations of love with multiple skeletons for crying out loud. You should have no trouble doing it with one.

“My bad, would you like help cooking?” you asked, approaching from the side.

“I’M NOT CERTAIN THAT’S A GOOD IDEA HUMAN, DON’T YOU HAVE ALLERGIES WHEN IT COMES TO PASTA?” Papyrus asked, imaginary eyebrow arching.

That was the excuse given when you threw up after eating Papyrus’s spaghetti the first time. It was supposed to be the special ‘Friendship Spaghetti’ night for everyone to bond. Only a week after the Incident, you and Tiffany being the only humans invited. Difference was Sans apparently liked Tiffany more then you which is why he sent her food to the void with his. Turned out every brother pair had their Judge send the meal away when Papyrus wasn’t looking.

You were the odd one out with no partner in crime, having to just eat the burnt pasta and watery tomato sauce. After having the worst two days of your life, everyone agreed to just say it was allergies. You still didn’t get any help from another skeleton when it came to future meals of terror. 

You picked at Edge’s lasagna, making sure not to eat broken glass. You didn’t even try to eat the charcoal meat from Black’s burrito. Your plate barely touched while every judge voided food for themselves and their brother. Well except for Sans who did it for Tiffany, Papyrus could eat them all whole while totally oblivious on what was going on. It made for an awkward ending to some dinners.

The only meal you did totally finish and not throw up was Blue’s tacos. An outcome which only happened because you checked what ingredients he was going to use before hand and switched the non-edible glitter with actual edible glitter. Maybe that’s why he warmed up to you more compared to the rest.

“Well I should be fine as long as I don’t eat it. Maybe I can just grate the parmesan cheese for you,” you said, a little tired of continuing the allergy charade. You really did wish you could try his spaghetti again since he knew how to cook it. Sans and Tiffany though insisted you stay with the allergy lie to ‘not hurt Pap’s feelings’. 

“WHY THANK YOU HUMAN! PLEASE GO AHEAD,” Papyrus said, rewarding you with a smile. You pulled the parmesan cheese from the fridge and grabbed a plate. The sound of stirring and cheese being chipped away filled the air.

“So where are you taking Tiffany?”

“TO THE PARK.”

“The weather looks nice for it.”

“YES, IT DOES.”

“You um taking the convertible?”

“OF COURSE.”

The silence stretched out afterwards and you were trying your best to not slump your shoulders. Papyrus would talk a mile a minute with literally every other resident in the mansion including even Edge who returns every word with insults. 

The difference in small talk though was obvious when you and Papyrus were alone. He’d answer questions just not… offer anything beyond short answers. The only reason you knew he was originally going to make chicken salad was because he gushed about it to Sans an hour ago.

“Well I’m done, um seeya around.”

“THANK YOU HUMAN.”

You headed towards your room, grabbing your jacket and key. The post office wasn’t allowed to directly deliver packages to the mansion, it made the skeletons too nervous having random strangers at the door. So packages had to be picked up at the post office branch which was thirty minutes away. 

You got an email that morning saying Red’s chopper part was delivered. You got pulled into ordering it since you had a good relation with a business which dealt in steel products. Was able to get it custom made per his specifications. Usually what you ordered from them was custom parts for the machine which could bend the laws of physics. You heard the tapping of the foot before turning and sighed as you saw the familiar sight of Black looking impatient.

He was wearing a violet collared shirt and dress pants, always dressed high-class around the mansion. In one hand he carried a stack of packages with ease, but you weren’t fooled. You knew for a fact some of those boxes were so heavy they could cause you to pull your back. You still got flashbacks of when you had to stay in bed and beg Blue to get you some Tylenol. Black accused you of faking.

“HUMAN, I HAVE SOME PACKAGES FOR YOU TO DELIVER SINCE YOU ARE GOING TO THE POST OFFICE,” Black said, dropping them to the floor. You weren’t crazy about how the bottom one scrunch up under all the weight.

“We talked about this Black, as San’s assistant my job is to do anything which pertains to repairing the machine in the basement. Delivering your packages isn’t cover under the job,” you said. 

“YOU ARE CORRECT IT IS NOT, BUT THE LOAN PAYMENT I GAVE YOU DOES NEED TO BE COMPENSATED FOR,” Black said with a smirk. When first starting to work for Sans, the income was good, but not good enough to keep the debt collectors away. Maybe if you had gotten such a good paying job when first starting out in college it would have been different. But you ended up missing six payments and like so many other college students found yourself attached to a mountain of loan debt.

Black offered to help you pay off the interest and penalty of your loan so you had nothing past due. You couldn’t stop recalling how in Tiffany’s case, Black already paid the full amount of the loan. You thought the agreement was you’d pay him back a little bit each month until the debt was settled. What wasn’t said was other ‘favors’ Black insisted also needed to done. Like take his clothes to the dry cleaners, bring food upstairs for him, or in this case take packages to the post office.

“Not at the cost of you getting me injured. Don’t forget you caused me to hurt my back and I couldn’t help Sans for a week on the machine,” you said, recalling the memory with a wince. That was the point when Sans finally intervened. It would have been nice if the laid-back skeleton was willing to help out earlier.

“GOOD GRIEF, IF YOUR SO WORRIED ABOUT YOUR BACK THEN I'LL HAVE MUTT TAKE THE HEAVIEST WHEN I FINALLY FIND THE USELESS MONSTER,” Black said, grabbing a package in the middle. The bottom package almost appeared to give a sigh of relief, no longer as scrunched up.

“Fine,” you said, not wanting to start a fight you knew you couldn’t win. With a grunt you lifted the stack of packages which was far from being light. You really would have hurt your back again if you taken the full load.

“AND MAKE IT SNAPPY! THERE'S FABRICS IN THERE A TAILOR NEEDS TO MAKE A DRESS FOR MY LADY,” Black said, actually taking a pose of putting a finger in the air as you walked by.

“Yeah, yeah,” you muttered, wondering why Black always acted like he was in a renaissance fair.

The drive in your old Honda to the post office was uneventful. You took the liberty of opening Red’s package, making sure the part met the specifications you sent them. Everything looked in order and you went to his room to deliver it. Only to find he wasn’t there, but his brother’s head quickly popped into view from another room.

“MY WORTHLESS BROTHER WENT TO THAT DESTESTABLE BAR. SINCE YOU APPEAR TO BE LOOKING FOR HIM, GO PICK HIM BEFORE HE GETS TOO DRUNK,” Edge said with a wave of his hand. Apparently you were doing favors for even people who didn’t help you pay your student loan. You supposed it wouldn’t hurt, Red could sometimes be ok company at Grillby’s. You both had an interest in machines which sometimes lead to conversations on how he should customize the ‘Road King’ chopper he was going to work on.

So back into your old Honda you went, arriving at Grillby’s bar. The sun was only now setting, even Red didn’t normally go to the bar this early. Maybe you could take it as a good sign of not finding him crazy drunk.

“(YYYY/NNNN)! COME ON OVER!”

Or maybe you really need to work on your deductive skills. You were definitely a far cry from Sherlock Holmes. You reluctantly heading in, noticing Grillby the fire elemental practically giving Red the death stare. A couple of other monsters were rolling their eyes and scooting away from him at the bar.

“Um hey Red, your brother sent me to get you back home. Guessing you’re too drunk to shortcut,” you said, giving Grillby an awkward wave. The elemental gave you a nod as he cleaned a glass.

“Aaawww you don’t say,” Red slurred, one bony hand keeping his head off the bar counter. Well at least he wasn’t angry drunk. He was in his red sweater and fur lined jacket, black shorts showing thick bone legs underneath.

“Yep Oh! And your part arrived, left it in your room.”

“Good job Tiffany Understudy!”

“I- um what?” you asked confused. Was this some sort of pun joke? If so you were totally missing it.

“Tiffany Understudy! That’s what you are! You know the replacement for when we can’t hang out with Tiffany. Stupid Paps is getting her tonight,” Red growled, for the first time sounding angry as he took a swing of mustard.

“That’s not funny,” you said, almost whispering it. You noticed there was suddenly a lot more attention on the two of you.

“Red! You’re out of line! (Y/N) you don’t need to take this. I’ll call a taxi for him,” Grillby said, flames flickering faster on his head.

“No, it’s um ok. I’m already here. I can put up with him until we get home,” you said with a shaky smile. The bartender stared at you for a second before shaking his head.

“Alright kid, don’t know why you are putting yourself through this.”

_Why am I putting myself through this?_

Maybe because in a way this was an opportunity to find out something. You always knew how the relation between Tiffany and the skeletons worked. They adored and loved her, and she adored and loved them back. You were always… the odd one out though. Never close to any of them except for Blue, Axe, and Traps. The first being a skeleton you started going out with in secret.

The other two pretty much your best friends. You weren’t ignorant of how Tiffany barely gave them any attention and it was probably a factor. Although you also got friendship points for trying to help them get the barrier of their world down. 

The two of you got in the car, in Red’s case crawling into the car, closing the doors. Taking one of Red’s old pun jokes, you mustard up your courage and opened your mouth.

“So why did you call me Tiffany Understudy?”

“Aw you know because your like *hic* an understudy. Tiffany is the big star and the one we all want to see, but sometimes the big star gets sick or has to hang out with stupid skeletons like Paps! So the understudy comes in, not as special ta look at. But hey you get the job done of trying to keep us entertained!” Red finished with a playful punch. Well maybe not as playful as it could be, you winced from the pain. 

“Do… do all the others see me that way?”

_Does Blue see me that way?_

“Yeah most of them *hic* except for those freaks you hang out with.”

“They’re not freaks!” you snapped, turning a little too sharply at a corner. Axe and Traps couldn’t help what they went through, what they became because of it.

“See? You three are practically a tripod! Now don’t feel all bad, we’re glad you got mad scientist brains to help us with the machine. I mean I luve Tiffany, but I wouldn’t trust her to fix a toaster.”

“But why can’t you see me as just… me, (Y/N), instead of as someone’s replacement?”

“I dunno, guess it’s because you just look so dull compared to our favorite girl,” Red said with a yawn. If you didn’t know any better, you’d say your soul cracked just a little from those words. You wanted this though, you wanted to find out how you stood with everyone. Now the only question was what you were going to do about it.

Red spared you more of his words when you parked by letting himself out and heading to his room. You took a moment to lean back on your car, staring at the starry sky. A couple of months ago you and Blue started to hang out… away from everyone else. It wasn’t hard to do it without anyone noticing, even Stretch was always busy with well… napping. Also other then San’s, he knew the most about the machine and helped with it. As the contraption appeared closer and closer to being finished, Sans and Stretch ending up spending a lot more hours in the basement.

This left Blue with a lot of time without his brother and you didn’t exactly have a crazy social life. Also you were required to use a bedroom at the mansion as part of your job. At first it was just things like going to a restaurant together as friends or to the arcade. But as the outings continued, things got a bit more… intimate. Hugs turned into kissed before going into the mansion. Sometimes you would fondle and rub against each other while watching a movie in private in his room.

You kept it to yourselves because Blue said his brother would get annoying and protective. Probably lecture him on going out with a human who he didn’t see as safe as Tiffany. **_<strike>Actually your pretty sure he almost said special.</strike> _**No one caught on to it except for maybe Tiffany. A couple of days ago she barged into Blue’s room to find you sitting on Blue’s lap, big arms around your waist. She got a look on her face which you couldn’t really identify and left. That’s when you decided you wanted to not keep it a secret. It was going to come out anyway and you wanted it on your terms.

“I don’t want to be an understudy,” you muttered, leaving the car and heading inside. You heard noises from various areas of the house, making you nervous about having a serious talk with so many people nearby. But this had to be done and you weren’t going to hold it off any longer.

The walk to Blue’s room felt like it took forever, but was probably only a minute. You noticed the lights off and knew Blue liked to go to bed early since he got up at five in the morning for his jog with Papyrus and Edge. You suddenly knew how you were going to do this. If you turned on the lights, try to go slow on the talk, you’d probably chicken out right before getting to the hard part. So you’ll just open the door, leave the lights off and say your peace.

Then turn on the lights and see how he reacted. Right… you could do this. Hand turned the doorknob, swinging it open. You were so scared you didn’t even look directly at the bed as you took a deep breath. You heard a startled shift and Blue say your name in a high pitch voice. Good he was awake, now just get the words out of your mouth.

“So I.. I.. just um wanted to say I really like spending time with you Blue. And I’m hoping we can be more… I mean I’m hoping we can tell everyone how close we got and get even closer. I know I’m kinda shy and socially awkward compared to some humans, but I think if you’ll give me a chance then you’ll find I’m worth it.”

All you heard was heavy breathing from the bed and with a swallow you went to turn on the lights.

“(Y/N) WAIT!”

You always wondered how Blue would look under his clothes. Sometimes when you fondled each other, you’d pull his shirt up to brush his ribs. Now you were getting a view of a lot more- naked ribs, chest, and broad shoulders. Saying it appeared like a skeleton body was off… more like marrow shaping into a beefy man. It would have normally been exciting to see if Tiffany wasn’t lying under it naked.

“Oh sorry,” you whispered, already turning and leaving. Apologizing was the right response, correct? You did walk in unannounced after all. 

“(Y/N) I’M SORRY, I MEAN WE DIDN’T MEAN TO… I…”

“(Y/N) please wait and let us explain!”

The only word you could use to describe what you felt was numb. Like you were having a out of body experience and all your senses have become dull. As you took a final step down the stairs and entered the living room, you realized you really should have paid more attention to your surroundings. Every other skeleton was there, looking ready to start a movie. Even Red who was rubbing his head, probably dragged from his bed by Edge.

You heard the stomping of steps to see Blue and Tiffany come down, Blue thankfully in white t-shirt and sweatpants. Tiffany wrapped in a silk purple robe, no doubt another gift from Black.

“(Y/N) WE HONESTLY DIDN’T-“

“Blue let me handle this,” said Tiffany stepping in front of him, “(Y/N) please understand the two of us were just expressing our feelings to each other. I can’t tell you how upset I am that you had to find out that way.”

_Your lying…_

You knew all about getting embarrassed and flustered. You knew exactly how a person reacted when they felt embarrassed at getting caught in something. Because awkward you ended up in that position way too many times.

She was saying the words right, but her facial expression, her body language was so calm she might as well have been drinking tea and reading a book. She wasn’t flushed with embarrassment and you knew all this was just an act. She probably would have preferred to continue her love making with Blue. Why did it take you so long to realize how… fake what she said sounded when actually looking at her?

“(Y/N) me and Blue share a bond. A soul bond just like with-“

“-it doesn’t work that way.”

Tiffany blinked in surprise at you interrupting. A couple of monsters as well, you weren’t the type to interrupt anyone let alone the wonderful great Tiffany. But a lump of determination was forming inside you, you weren’t just going to let everyone say this was ok.

“Monsters and humans create a soul bond after they have sex. You can’t use that as an excuse for sleeping with him after you caught us getting close. You are literally with seven other guys, but a couple of days after you notice me in the lap of the Blue you suddenly say you had feelings for him as well? This isn’t love, this is just you not wanting to let even one of them go.”

Now she was finally showing a reaction, cheeks turning bright red, eyes narrowing. This wasn’t embarrassment though, this was anger at being called out. Blue’s head was practically asking for whiplash as he swung it back and forth between the two humans.

“Uncalled for (Y/N), Tiffany just realized how awesome my bro is. And she tells me all the time how great he is,” Stretch said, getting up. It was soon followed by more skeletons standing up, all eyes on you. The one to dare question Tiffany’s wonderful character.

“I THINK THIS HUMAN OUTSTAYED HIS WELCOME. QUITE FRANKLY I DON’T KNOW WHY WE ALLOWED HIM TO HANG AROUND THIS LONG,” Black said with a snort.

“I AGREE, HIS LUCKY WE VIEW HIM AS SO WEAK OR I’D BE TAKING A POUND OF FLESH FROM HIM IN A FIGHT,” Edge growled, crossing his arms.

“Give the word m’lord and I’ll throw him out,” Mutt said, one eye glowing violet as he took a puff from his smoking doggie treat.

Sans, Blue and Red had been silent as well as Papyrus who squeezed his hands in agitation, not enjoying the display of an argument in his home. You had to admit, as harsh as their words were, they didn’t hurt as much as you expected. Maybe for once the not so close relationship with them was working in your favor. Trust Tiffany though to be able to change that.

“Please let’s not fight, the soul bond between me and Blue just formed and this shouldn’t be a time for everyone to be angry,” Tiffany said, doing her classic hand on heart move. This time you were certain your soul cracked a little. You blinked as your eyes watered slightly, no way were you giving anyone in here the satisfaction of seeing you cry.

“(Y/N) while you were a great help with completing our machine, I’m afraid I’m going to have to terminate your employment here. Please collect your belongs and leave,” Sans said, appearing almost apologetic. No two weeks notice evidently, just kick him to the curb as fast as can be. Was it his imagination or did Tiffany flinch slightly at the words ‘completing our machine’?

_Wait! My Sans and Papyrus still need project Battering Ram!_

“Not so fast,” you said, noticing San’s pause as he was turning to head to the basement.

“Per our verbal contract, I stay employed not just until the machine is fixed, but also until project Battering Ram is done as well. I’ll find residence elsewhere, but I expect to have the same resources to help Axe and Traps break the barrier in their world.”

“We’ll deal with it kid,” Stretch said, scratching his chin. Project Battering Ram was to put it simply looking to use human technology which could break the barrier. Axe and Traps were the only ones who came from a world where the barrier existed, everyone else was pulled here right after their barrier was destroyed.

“You can’t, none of you were involved in any way with developing the project. Sans if you’re going to cut off my funding for this then I want to hear it directly from your lips. I want to hear you say you’re going to let thousands of monsters die of starvation just because everyone here hates my guts.”

You were shaking, you were terrified. Not of being hurt even though there had been a lot of threats. Terrified of letting your two best friends down. They needed this and you couldn’t let their only chance at freedom get away just because you wanted to run from here and never look back. Blue finally moved, taking a step past Tiffany who stiffened.

“(Y/N) We Don’t Hate You, I Mean I Don’t-“

“Alright kid, you get your funding. Now get your stuff and get out,” Sans said, no longer appearing so much apologetic as annoyed. With a huff you nodded and headed to your room, not sparing Blue a glance. No one helped of course, not even Papyrus who looked like he almost offered a hand but stopped under the glare of Edge next to him. It was grueling and hard, but maybe you should thank Black for all those times he made you carry stuff. Because apparently you developed enough muscle to pull it all off by yourself.

You drove to a cheap motel, using your credit card to get a room. You’d call your Sans and Papyrus tomorrow morning and explain what happened. You wish you had a moment to say good-bye to them before they kicked you out.

As you laid in bed, you blinked in surprise when you realized tears were going down your cheeks. Looks like you couldn’t hold it in any longer. You sniffled and sobbed a little in your pillow, torn between being glad no one was witnessing your crying and wanting someone there to hold you.


	3. Surprise Phone Calls

“What do you want human?”

You winced slightly, why did no one bother to say your name? Both you and Tiffany were here for a month and everyone had already starting call her by her name. Well except for Black and Red who called her things like ‘my lady’ and ‘honey’.

In front of you stood the biggest Sans you’ve seen so far, a foot taller and so wide he probably had to turn to the side to enter doors. Him and his brother were at the guest house, Axe and Traps. Not the best nicknames to give monsters, but Sans waved off you pointing it out. 

“I um wanted to talk to you about an idea I had, when it um came to your world,” you said, finding it hard to look into the huge red orb staring at you. You found yourself instead looking at the ragged blue hoodie and white t-shirt, stains on it which you were hoping were just ketchup. You overheard a very descriptive story of their background by Edge when he was explaining to Tiffany why she shouldn’t go near the two.

“You mean the world where me and bro were starving and had to eat human flesh to survive,” Axe said, giving a wide sinister grin. It didn’t take a genius to figure out he was trying to scare you. And by the shaking of your knees, it was working some.

“I.. I yeah, here’s the thing. My job here is to help San’s build the machine to send everyone back, but I would um feel bad if I helped send you back to there just to…”

“Die of starvation? Dust?”

“You know you’re a dick!” you snapped, then felt your face turn pale. Oh great idea, you talked back to the monster who could probably kill you with a butter knife although it would probably be the axe resting against his leg. The red eye blinked once and a wheezing sound came from the skeleton’s non-existent throat. The shoulders shook and it took a minute before the monster could speak.

“Oh jeez kid, looks like you have some backbone after all. Here I thought you were going to pee in your pants,” Axe chuckled, hand slapping his knee.

“It might still happen, look I’ll try to keep it short- I want to see if we can take down the barrier in your world. So when you do go back, you aren’t trap there anymore,” you said, the last words almost coming out a whisper. Because Axe stopped looking entertained real fast and you saw a hand reaching towards the axe.

_Don’t run._

Your legs were screaming for you to do so, but you stayed in place. Because even though you were scared your gut instinct said things would only get a lot worst if you exposed your back to this monster.

“Is that supposed to be a fucking joke? Or are you offering yourself and six other human souls for us to take when we leave,” Axe said, crazy looking smile back in place.

“H.. human technology is a lot more advanced now. In fact while the monsters have been staying on the surface, there have been studies of what will disrupt magic or even outright nullify it. So, it’s possible a device can be made to nullify the magic of the barrier and break it.”

“Why help us?”

Axe cocked his head to the side, no longer reaching for the axe but for the gaping hole in his skull. The fingers pulled on it and the skeleton’s face scrunched up in pain.

“I mean the pretty girl said everyone should give us a chance. Not judge us by our past actions and treat us fairly, but she’s not instantly jumping to save my freaking world. So why are you risking me go crazy and chop your head off to talk about this? Why are you, the guy everyone barely pays attention to, want to stick your neck out for us?” Axe ranted, each word making him pull again and again at the hole.

“Stop that,” you muttered, grabbing the upraised arm. You both froze, you could feel the bones giving off warmth underneath fabric. This… was the first time you touched a skeleton other than an eager handshake from Papyrus and Blue when first introduced. You hastily leg go, looking down at the floor.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have touched you without-“

“-just answer the question kid,” Axe said, suddenly looking very tired.

“…I’m not considered special really in anyway. I mean I’m smart, very smart, it’s why San’s hired me. But it’s like you said, no one really pays attention to me because I guess I’m not much to look at. It’s kinda selfish really, but if I can pull off helping you, I mean pull off saving your kingdom well…”

You finally looked up, squaring your shoulders.

“…that would make me really cool right?”

The skeleton smiled again, a more sincere one, no malice in it.

“Yeah kid, it would make you cool times ten.”

You jerked awake when your cell phone went off. It was playing the song Mr Blue Sky, so you knew it was either Axe or Traps. No… Sans or Papyrus, you didn’t live there anymore, no need to use those lousy nicknames. You picked up the cell phone, putting it to your ear.

“Morning,” you muttered, probably should say a lot more like the whole getting kicked out thing, but brain wasn’t quite functioning right yet.

“Kid listen carefully, did Papyrus, Red, Black, or Blue call you yet this morning?”

“Um no,” you said with a yawn, wiping drool off your chin.

“Tell them no. In fact, block them and just ignore them. Don’t give them the time of day to even give a response.”

“ARE YOU TELLING HIM SANS!”

“YEAH PAPS I’M EXPLAINING NOW. Look just forget what they say, they made their bed and now they need to lie in it.”

“Sans you’re not making sense,” Luke said sitting up, noticing the pause at not using a nickname.

“Right, so me and bro know everything which happened last night. You caught the chick screwing the Blueberry and of course everyone took her side like usual and kicked you out.”

“There’s um a bit more to it then-“

“-yeah I’m sure and we can talk about it later. Now here’s what happened this morning. Chick sabotaged the machine.”

“SHE WHAT!?”

Six months of work down the drain, days upon days of putting parts and wiring together. One time you got sprayed with fluids and smelled like a skunk for a whole month when trying to get tubes in place. Black for the first time stopped calling you ‘HUMAN’ and went with ‘SKUNKY’. All your work and suffering to create the masterpiece of science just for her to… well that’s just peachy.

“Oh that’s not the craziest thing to happen or… well the worst. When she sabotaged the machine it cause a electric surge, hitting Stretch and turned him to dust.”

“I… is Blue ok?”

“Don’t know and don’t care, his own fault for having bad taste in women,” your Sans said bluntly, you winced as you wondered if you should call him. Then again, what would you say?

_Oh hey, it’s the guy who said he liked you while you had your dick in a girl. Just wanted to see how you were doing._

Maybe it was cowardly, but you didn’t want to talk to him. Best to let his cousins console him.

“Then after the electric surge, there was a big flash of light in the house. Tiffany, Classic, Edge, and Mutt all disappeared. THEN the freaking thing explodes afterwards.”

You found yourself staring at the wall, trying to process everything just said.

“Explodes as in…”

“Nothing more than scraps and pieces again. And you know what that means.”

“They’re going to try to get me to come back to fix it,” you said with absolute certainty. The so called ‘Machine Fixing Team’ was made up of four- Sans, Stretch, you, and Red. Sans and Stretch knew the most about how the machine worked, leaving you the third most knowledgeable and Red dead last. Out of everyone on the team Red put in the least effort, only coming down to the basement to help when it suited him.

“You understand now why I’m calling kid? Those a-holes are going to try to threaten and bully you back and you know what- you don’t owe them a thing. This is your real buds trying to give you a warning of what’s going to happen.”

“Yeah but… Sans the machine needs to be fixed if project Battering Ram is going to work,” you said, shifting under the covers.

“My science know how aint what it used to be, but I know this- the machine will take us back to exactly the moment we left when it finally works. Look I do want it fixed, but I see no reason for you to suffer for it to get done. Creampuff can find other brains to help him instead of you even if it takes longer.”

“Ok… I won’t come back to help with the machine, but I am still working on Battering Ram and I’ll keep you updated,” you said, thinking of your progress on breaking the barrier. Your focus so far had been electromagnetic waves, what studies you found on it showed it could cause all sorts of disruptions with magic if there was a concentration of them.

“I know kid, you give me a heads up though if they cut off the funding for your research… in fact as the guys invested in it, me and Paps give you permission to use the funding to find yourself a new nice place.”

“San’s I can’t do that,” you said, just getting a bank account to fund Battering Ram had been like pulling teeth. Classic Sans finally relented, but warned he’d be watching the spending like a hawk.

“Oh yeah you can kid, you see without Classic here the others can’t bully us like they use to. They give you any trouble with the funding, they’ll be starting a fight they might not win.”

“I… I’ll think about it, but try not to do anything crazy like really fight with them,” you said chewing your lip. You were actually in kind of a bad spot. The income now suddenly gone and even though you saved up, a lot of the money went to your student loan. And it definitely felt like sweet justice for them to pay since they kicked you out without even a day’s notice.

“I can’t make you do it kid. All I can hope is you… well… show the same backbone I hear you had last night. Made me smile when I heard how you stood up to the chick and told her you weren’t fooled by the innocent act.”

“Thanks,” you said feeling suddenly shy.

“Don’t be a stranger kid, now go find yourself a decent place.”

“BYE HUMAN, WE CAN’T WAIT TO TALK TO YOU AGAIN!”

“Bye Paps! Bye Sans!” you almost yelled, feeling better. Then you realized half the people you used to hang out with were either gone or dead, now you felt guilty for feeling better. Hanging up, you went and grabbed your laptop.

You typed up an email for Papyrus, explaining how you got word of what happened. You wouldn’t be returning, but you were attaching all relevant files you had about the machine to the email. Further files and documentations should be in San’s room. You even gave some suggestions on how they should get started, what machine parts to look for first and so forth. Then you ended it with sending condolences for what happened to Stretch.

It was polite, to the point. Felt more like an email you send to coworkers after leaving a company then friends.

_But you weren’t really friends with any of them, you were just… Tiffany Understudy._

Your thoughts were interrupted at a phone call, it was from classic Papyrus. You almost ignored it, you really did. But it just felt so gutless to not even speak to the skeleton if you were going to refuse to come back to help with his brother’s disappearance.

“Hi Papyrus, did you get my email,” you said when answering the phone.

“I UM YES HUMAN AND YOUR SUGGESTIONS SOUND VERY GOOD! IT’S JUST… WE REALLY NEED YOU HERE HUMAN TO HELP US. WE’RE WILLING TO PAY LIKE BEFORE! EVEN PAY MORE THIS TIME!”

You gritted your teeth, really wishing you had taken your San’s advice and just ignore the call. They weren’t even apologizing for ganging up on you, for kicking you out the minute they weren’t happy with you.

“Look Papyrus, there’s plenty of other humans you can hire who can help just as much. In fact, you probably want to hire someone who already graduated college instead of a person still attending it.”

“BUT NONE OF THOSE HUMANS KNOW MONSTER TECHNOLOGY HUMAN. I’M SURE WE CAN COME TO SOME AGREEME- ACK!”

“Papyrus?”

“NOW LISTEN HERE HUMAN, YOU WILL RETURN AT ONCE. YOU WILL TAKE THE SAME PAY AND YOU WILL BE THANKFUL WE ARE LETTING YOU RETURN!”

You didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at how Black was literally demanding you return and be happy about it. Just what delusional world did the guy live in?

“No thanks,” you said cheekily, hanging up. Then you blocked the number… and blocked Black’s number and Red’s number. You almost blocked Blue’s number, but stopped yourself.

You turn back to your laptop. You were about to look for a place before the phone call, planning to use your savings. New plan now, you were using the funds to get yourself a nice place. You browsed all locations for rent near your college, price not being an option. There was a condo available, as in you could move in by the end of the week.

You typed up an email to contact the owner, determine to do what Sans suggested. Keep away from those guys and live your life.

The problem with making a silent oath to have nothing to do with people, is it was hard to keep if the said people showed up on campus right after you finished class.

“Hey kid, how about we take a walk?” Red said with a grin from outside the building. Got a couple of glances, but not many. The college had its fair share of monster and human students.

“I already told Papyrus, I’m not interested. You technically were part of the team to fix the machine longer then me Red. You shouldn’t even need my help,” you said, getting a winced from Red. Looks like all his lazy work ethics were coming back to bite him.

“Sorry kid, but we need the best. And you are the best, I mean I know things turned um… crappy. But money wise we’ll make it worth your while to take the job of-“

“-Tiffany Understudy.”

“Um what?”

“That’s the job right? Your trying to hire me back as Tiffany Understudy. I mean you really want one more then ever since the actual Tiffany has gone God knows where,” you said, hand tightening on your backpack strap. The big skeleton stared at you for a minute before looking away.

“Ok, I deserve that, but it doesn’t change the fact our brothers are gone and we need your help to find them. So let me make this clear.”

Red stepped forward, using his height to his full advantage, staring down at you with empty sockets.

“Either take the fucking job or your going to get a bad- HEY!”

You were already walking away or more importantly to something, the police officer standing at the corner. There was always one near each school building, ironically security was increased to protect the monster students who would probably be targeted by bigots.

“Excuse me officer,” you said, getting the attention of an older man in a police uniform.

“The skeleton over there in the red sweater isn’t a student here, his trespassing. Oh and he just threatened me,” you said, pointing to Red. The said skeleton went from bad ass attitude to looking like a goldfish out of water. The officer’s eyes went from you to the skeleton and he started approaching Red. Sweat began forming on the skeleton’s head.

“Sir I’m going to need to see your id.”

“Ah… nope!”

The word ending with Red disappearing in a blink. The officer took a step back, hand reaching for his gun.

“It’s ok, I think he just teleported. I used to work for him and quit. Now his kind of harassing me,” you said, feeling your heartbeat going a mile a minute. You were actually surprised by your own actions. You stood up to scary big Red… well went to an officer and asked him to stand up to scary big Red. Still though, a big leap from the nerd who let Red insult him.

“We’ll use the security cameras to get his picture sent out to the rest of the officers, if he shows up around here then we’ll know right away he doesn’t belong. You may want to place a restraining order on him,” the officer said, then grabbed a radio on his chest. From the sound of it he was contacting the security office of the college.

“I’ll think about it,” you said, then gave your name and student id to the officer. You really weren’t planning to get a restraining order, what good would it do against a guy who could teleport? Now that you thought about it, chances are the next place they’d show up would be at your condo.

“Right, I can do this. I’m not going to let them push me around anymore,” you said to yourself, but your hands shook a little as you grabbed your phone. Part of you wanted to go to your own Sans and Papyrus and explain what was going on. But you knew it could lead to a fight… a fight where either of them could be hurt or dusted. You weren’t going to risk that. You ordered some equipment online, something you hoped would put a stop to this harassing once and for all.  



	4. Furry Traps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I did some altering with previous chapters, apparently I missed making sure Black and Blue spoke in their all-caps voice. Just a small change, but wanted to let everyone know it was fixed.

It was a week and a half since Red showed up and you were just starting to fool yourself into thinking they gave up. You were setup in your rented condo with new furniture, the place actually starting to feel like a new home. Shows you shouldn’t let your guard down. It all started with a banging on the door, someone pounding it so hard you saw the frame shake.

“HUMAN, OPEN UP THIS DOOR IMMEDIATELY! THIS FOOLISHNESS HAS LASTED LONG ENOUGH!”

Your shoulders sagged with relief when you heard it was Black. At least you didn’t have to worry about anyone shortcutting into your condo.

“Please go away!” you shouted, already looking for headphones near your couch. You’d probably have to just ignore his shouting and pounding, hoping some music would block it out. What happened next made the search irrelevant.

Ping!

One door hinge flew off, thumping the tile floor. Then the second, then the doorknob tumbled down with a metallic clang. You watched dumbly as the whole door fell to the floor, showing Black in his armor. The black armor with razor sharp spikes made to intimidate his enemies.

“There goes my security deposit,” you muttered, your brain probably in denial about how much danger you were in. Black stepped forward, door cracking under his boot. Your throat felt too dry as you opened up your mouth to speak.

“What’s up? By the way, this is breaking and entering.”

“OH I'M PLANNING TO DO MUCH MORE THEN 'BREAKING AND ENTERING' BEFORE THE DAY'S OVER,” Black said, putting more cracks in the door as he continued walking. You stepped back for every step he took forward.

“Um aren’t you like part of the royal guard? I’m pretty sure someone of that position shouldn’t be committing crimes like this,” you said, pulling your collar. God you hoped all that stuff you bought online worked.

“DO NOT LECTURE ME HUMAN! I’M DRAGGING YOU BACK TO THE MANSION AND YOU’LL STAY THERE UNTIL THE MACHINE IS FIXED,” Black said, hands forming into fists. You were suddenly very aware of just how much bigger he was and how big those hands were. To top it off, you found yourself against a wall as he continued walking forward.

“You’re now um planning to kidnap me which is a crime to. So’s slavery, I’m pretty sure that’s what your planning once you take me to your home against my will,” you said trying to swallow your fear. Please let this be working, please don’t let Black turn him into some serf or whatever his crazy renaissance mind wants to do with him.

“YOUR FEELINGS ARE IRRELEVANT WHEN IT COMES TO FINDING MY BROTHER. DO I LOOK LIKE I GIVE A SHIT ABOUT YOUR CONCERNS IN THIS,” Black said, slamming a fist into the wall next to your head. You were very conscious of how the plaster broke and crack under his hit.

“No… but you should be worried about the monkey.”

Black blinked for a second, for the first time appearing speechless as his forehead scrunched up.

“I… SHOULD BE WORRIED ABOUT THE MONKEY?”

“Yeah, that monkey,” you said, pointing to a toy monkey on the kitchen counter. You were starting to become aware of how close Black was and how his breath smelled like lavender. Big bad-ass Black actually had lavender breath, who knew? The skeleton pulled away thankfully and went over to the counter, picking up the said toy.

“AND WHY SHOULD I BE WORRIED ABOUT THIS UGLY THING,” Black said with a mocking smile, tossing the furry figured up and down in the air with one hand.

“Because it has a hidden camera which streamed everything you said live to the police,” you said with your own smile. And boy was it hard work setting it up, even for a engineer major. It was actually one of three hidden cameras, all start recording at the word command ‘What’s up?’ Then send a email to the police with a link so everything could be seen live. 

Black froze as the monkey was in the air, failing to catch it as it flopped to the ground.

“Oh and it’s also sending this live video feed to the royal family too… well to the email they advertise on their website. I’m giving it fifty-fifty chance of either the police storming in here or Ambassador Frisk themselves showing up at my doorstep,” you said, taking a step back from Black. Now here came even the scarier part, how would Black react? Would he charge him and smash his poor nerdy body to pieces?

“Saying doorstep may not be accurate, you have no door at this point.”

Both of you whipped your heads to the entrance to see a well… you didn’t actually know their gender. But they were definitely Ambassador Frisk, dressed in a blue sweater and jeans. 

“Um… hi,” you nearly squeaked. You were joking about the ambassador showing up, you really were. You figured the police for sure would be the first to arrive, how did they even get here so quickly?

“My mother already called the police asking for them to let us… handle this for now. Assuming things don’t get further out of control,” Frisk said, arching an eyebrow at Black. The skeleton was sweating like crazy, looking like he was about to overheat in his armor. Since he wasn’t going to speak, you cleared your throat and responded.

“Not that I’m ungrateful for the save but… how the hell did you get here so quickly,” you said, taking a couple of steps away from Black.

“Papyrus explained everything which happened recently and while the royal family respected your decision to move on, we didn’t totally trust others to do the same. I decided to stay close by in case something unexpected happened,” Frisk said, sparing Black a glare. The skeleton seemed to wilt under the gaze.

You only met Frisk one other time when they showed up at the mansion three months ago. And just like now being in their presence was intimidating. The person who lead monsters to the surface, who successfully passed monster integration laws, and who met routinely with world leaders such as the president- before they even reached sixteen.

At the first meeting they spoke to Tiffany first, probably heard a lot more from the skeletons about her. But ended up spending more time with you to discuss the machine. Diplomacy may have been their strength, but they had a sharp mind and picked up on the various steps you were taken to help repair the machine.

All the skeletons either loved her or… you didn’t want to say feared her, but it felt that way. Your Sans and Papyrus wouldn’t even leave the guesthouse to meet her. And you remembered how Black’s skull sweated back then as he stuttered a greeting and was uncharacteristically quiet. You had a feeling Black had some sort of significant experience with the Frisk in his world to cause him to act this way.

“Now first things first, as ambassador I need to merit out punishment when one of our royal guard acts in such a dishonorable way. Black considered yourself removed from the royal guard, all your privileges are as of now revoked,” Frisk said, placing a hand out. Black closed his eyes, almost appearing to be in physical pain. Then with a deep breath he pulled off a badge from his armor, the delta rune symbol shining under the light. 

“Of Course Ambassador,” Black said, voice softer as he handed the badge over.

“Furthermore you are now on the Surface Watchlist,” Frisk said, getting a outright wince from Black. The Surface Watchlist was a bit of debatable law many anti-monster lawmakers insisted on. It was something really pushed to happen when Undyne publicly nearly skewered a human with a spear. Basically any monster on the watchlist who was caught assaulting a human would be sent to the underground for five years. Didn’t matter the circumstances or who started the fight. The argument being since monsters had magic, they had to show more restraint when it came to violence.

While on a personal level you didn’t approve of the law, your shoulders did sag with relief. You didn’t have to worry about Black ever laying a finger on you now that he was on the watchlist.

“(Y/N) it’s my understand you owe Black here a debt because he partly paid off your student loan,” Frisk said, cocking their head to the side.

“Um yeah,” you said, not able to get another word out. You were still in slight shock in how this person was totally owning Black. You’d think the skeleton would at least bring up a little protest.

“Consider it erased… in fact, Black here will pay the rest of your loan. Won’t you Black,” Frisk said, not really making it a question.

“I Will Make Sure It’s Done Ambassador,” Black said, looking like he was almost turtling into his armor.

“Well now with that over with, (Y/N) there’s a café on the first floor. Would you mind joining me for a coffee?” Frisk asked, smiling again. You’d think they were just normal buddies hanging out with the way they smiled at you.

“Sure thing, I mean yes Ambassador,” you said, realizing you weren’t acting nearly formal enough with the person who was famous worldwide.

“Oh please, I told you when we first met- call me Frisk. Let’s go downstairs,” Frisk said turning. You couldn’t stop yourself from glancing at Black who appeared to be just a husk of his former self. Staring dully at the floor with all confidence thrown out the window.

“You know it’s funny Black,” Frisk said as they reached the doorway, sparing the skeleton a look over their shoulder.

“You worship and love a very vile human who betrayed you and may have very well gotten your brother killed. But you treat the human who did nothing but help your family for six months as total dirt. What do you think that says of you as a person?”

Frisk didn’t wait for a reply, simply exiting the room. You followed quickly after because you weren’t sure you even wanted to hear if Black had a response.

The café downstairs was small, just four tables outside with umbrellas. A little stand where coffee and hot chocolate was made, there wasn’t even a cappuccino machine. Calling it a café may have been an overstatement. Frisk ordered a coffee while you went with the hot chocolate, nerves not exactly solid and not wanting more caffeine to shake them further.

“Let me guess, you’re also going to try to talk me into helping with the machine,” you said with a sigh. You felt a bit stupid, you didn’t realize the motive until you got your drink. Couldn’t refuse hearing them out, not when they bought a hot chocolate for you. You both took the table farthest from the stand, no one else around so no real fear of anyone hearing this discussion.

“Well I won’t lie, I do have a sales pitch. Maybe first I can start by bringing up something which shouldn’t normally be discussed. You know of course of the time loops I’ve been in,” Frisk said, you instantly tensed. As far as you knew, you were the only human who knew Frisk went through repeated time loops underground. Reliving a whole week over and over again. Even Tiffany didn’t know about it. The only reason you were allowed to know was because it was necessary to be aware of them when doing algorithm calculations with the machine. 

You still didn’t know WHY it happened, Sans may have had theories, but he didn’t share them. Maybe this was the true reason Frisk intimidated you. Who knew how old they truly were when you take into account the time loops. It explained the maturity to take on the ambassador job when they reached the surface.

“Yes, Sans made it clear though not to ask details,” you said, still remembering how San’s used his ‘scary look’, the eyeless sockets staring at you when he said not to even think of snooping into it.

“Well Sans isn’t here and quite frankly even if he was, it’s not his choice on how much I tell someone. Tell me what do you think I did in those time loops?” Frisk asked before taking a sip of their coffee.

“Honestly? The first thing which came to my mind was the movie Groundhog day. I thought maybe you were spending those endless days learning piano or how to ice skate,” you said, blushing as Frisk nearly spit out their coffee. The person was snickering and trying to get themselves under control. Finally after taking a deep breath they spoke.

“That… is a nice thought and I wished I had approach it in such a way.”

“As opposed to the way you took which was…”

“I killed monsters.”

Now you nearly choked on your drink, shakily putting it down as you coughed to clear your throat. Your eyes refused to leave the person in front of you. You were suddenly certain you were learning a lot more about Frisk then most people. Maybe even learning more about them then Sans.

“Not all monsters mind you, in fact not even most of them. But I was… hurt by a lot of them. Killed in fact, that was by the way something which could trigger another time loop. I wouldn’t die, the week would just start over,” Frisk said, staring down at their drink.

“Just like Groundhog day,” you said, wanting to slap yourself for speaking. Frisk simply chuckled though.

“Yes just like the silly movie. The truth was some of them I just couldn’t forgive for attacking me. Hypocritical since others I did forgive. I only wanted to help the ones I like reach the surface,” Frisk said, finger moving alone the brim of their mug.

“And I tried and tried, and oh how I tried to get those monsters I liked to the surface. The ones I was starting to see as family who would be so happy to get to see the sun,” Frisk said, smiling. Then sighed as they popped their chin with a hand, giving you an eerie look.

“But I couldn’t do it… or at least, I couldn’t do it the way I wanted. You see the only way I could pull off getting anyone to the surface was if I didn’t kill anyone. So I had to learn if not to forgive all of them… at least spare all of them so the ones who deserved it reached the surface,” Frisk said, leaning back and finally stopping with the eerie look which was creeping you out. 

You heart was racing slightly, this was significant. As in more then your brain could truly handle. You weren’t scared per say, but you felt you had something important being shared with you. Something way too important for nobody special you to learn.

“Frisk why are you…”

“Tiffany has a family.”

You were back to being tense, it was like a wooden pole strapped to your spine to keep it straight.

“They contacted the royal family when they lost contact with her. They didn’t know a lot about her situation beyond the fact she lived with monsters. The father and her little brother are good people, really worried about her and wondering what’s going on,” Frisk said before taking a slurp of their coffee.

“The mother on the other hand is a total selfish bitch, I think Tiffany inherited her less stellar qualities from the lady,” Frisk said, back to giving you an eerie look.

“I’m being manipulated here, aren’t I.”

“You are, but it doesn’t actual change a couple of important facts. You can get the machine fixed quicker and Tiffany’s family will be in less pain because of it,” Frisk said, pushing her empty mug to the side.

“Because even if I can’t forgive Tiffany, it’s not just about her when deciding whether or not I should help,” you said, seeing what parallels Frisk was trying to draw. And damn it, how could you be angry with them when they shared something so private to try to convince you to come back.

_Still though…_

“Do you have any clue what it was like for me living there?”

“Sans and I don’t talk as much as we used to. Papyrus didn’t say much either which I admit was unusual.”

“I was a tool,” you said, now pushing your own empty mug aside.

“I was an ignorant tool, I didn’t realize it was all I was seen as, but it was pretty much what they saw me as… except for a couple of best friends I have there.”

“I’m sure even if they were letting Tiffany’s charm lead them, deep down they-“

“-twenty minutes.”

Frisk wisely kept quiet, cocking their head to the side. You took a deep breath before elaborating.

“I was kicked out of the house twenty minutes after everyone decided they didn’t want me there. Not even a day’s notice to try to find another place. It was like I was this human sized wrench which just broke, needed to be taken outside and thrown into the trash,” you said, eyes watering. Embarrassment filled you as you accidentally let a couple of tears escape, quickly wiping them from your sleeve. 

That’s when you heard the sound of a boot shifting on the ground. Both you and Frisk turned to see Black only fifteen feet away, this time staring at you not Frisk with an unreadable expression.

“BLACK LEAVE NOW,” Frisk said in voice so loud it could compete with Papyrus’s vocal cords if he actually had any. For the first time Black showed defiance, squaring his shoulders.

“I.. I Want To Speak With (Y/N)-“

“You don’t get to make demands, not after all the crap you pulled. Now leave here before you make me angry,” Frisk hissed, getting up. The two had a staring contest for a minute before Black finally turned to leave, but not before giving you one last glance. You didn’t respond, finding yourself looking away from him, wishing he didn’t get a chance to see you at your moment of weakness. You didn’t feel calm until you heard the footsteps finally disappear in the distance.

“Just to be clear, I’m not trying to mend the relationship between you and the remaining skeletons. In fact from what I understand, there’s a guesthouse on the property so you don’t even have to see any of them outside of working on the machine,” Frisk said sitting down.

“(Y/N) whatever you require, how ever we need to make arrangements so you find this bearable- we’ll do it.”

You believed them, you still didn’t want to do it though. But there were other aspects of the situation you couldn’t get out of your head. How this would make it even easier to help your Sans and Papyrus. How you would be helping a family get their daughter back. You always wanted to do something… important. Something to show you mattered which was probably selfish. People were supposed to do help others simply because they were selfish.

“Ok, I’ll do it, but I’m going to have a list of requirements with me working there,” you said, finally getting rewarded a smile from Frisk. 

“(Y/N) YOUR BACK!”

“Get over here kid!”

“Hey guys!” you said, getting into a hug with your Sans and Papyrus. Frisk made all the arrangements for movers and a van to take your stuff to the guesthouse. All you needed to do was show up. You could feel your anxiety spike when the door the mansion opened, only to find yourself grinning at who it was.

“Didn’t want your welcome back being done by the losers back there,” your Sans said, nodding to Papyrus, Red, and Black who were in the living room. The three skeletons just stood there, awkwardly. Maybe it was your imagination, but you’d swear Red and Black appeared a little envious. As if ‘Hey these guys have their human but what about us?’.

“Thanks Sans, you have no idea how glad I am to see you two,” you said, getting rewarded with a chin rubbing the top of your head by your Papyrus.

“UM HUMAN YOUR MISTAKEN, THAT’S NOT SANS, THAT’S AXE,” Classic Paps said with a raised finger.

“Nope, from over here his Sans and this is Papyrus, your brother can get his own nickname. By the way I already decided I’m just going to call you Classic Paps,” you said, feeling nice and safe in your group hug.

“WELL I DON’T KNOW IF I WANT-“

“It’s a requirement on the list which the ambassador sent to you,” you said, feeling the two skeletons in your arms tense. You forgot they didn’t even like hearing Frisk mentioned, you gave them a final pat before pulling out of the hug.

“OH I SEE… YES IT IS HERE,” Classic Paps said, pulling a piece of paper out. Maybe you went overboard with a list, but you weren’t giving anything to chance. If you couldn’t love staying here, you were going to make sure you didn’t despise. The list basically noted all your requirements for helping with the machine. The number of hours you would work, the things they couldn’t ask like ‘favors’ Black did in the past, and how you would decide for yourself who you wanted to call Papyrus.

“Right, so I’d like to start with seeing the video of what exactly happened,” you said, stifling the urge to ask how Blue was doing. The three skeletons exchange glances while you felt your two friends move closer to your back.

“Alright kid, it aint pretty though,” Red said, going over to the flat-screen television.

Sans had a camera to track what went on in the basement with the machine. Whether it was because he didn’t trust you or because he was using it for in case the machine did something unexpected, you never knew for sure.

They must have expected you to ask about this because the footage started right before Tiffany entered the basement. You frowned unconsciously, thinking of the code needed to enter the basement. Sans was paranoid beyond belief about it, only him, Stretch, Red, and yourself were supposed to know it and it was changed every two weeks.

She was stepping carefully inside , obviously trying to keep her footsteps quite as she looked around. Then when she was confident she was alone, she hurried to the machine.

It was to put it simply art, calling it the ‘machine’ never felt right. The pipes were curved and twisted in a pattern which reminded you of water streaming down a canal. The circuitry hidden behind multi-colored glass, to light up the basement with a rainbow of colors. Finally finishing it off with a tiny swirling vortex of energy constantly floating inside the machine and what you got was an impressive sight to behold.

Maybe it was just you who saw it that way though because Tiffany didn’t even take a moment to admire it before grabbing a fire extinguisher and smashing it into the glass. Circuitry was cracked and snapped, sparks flying off the machine.

Stretch made an appearance then, looking out of breath. He raised one long arm to say something, but never got to speak. A bolt of lighting jumped from the circuitry, barely missing Tiffany by a foot and hitting Stretch dead on. You winced as the whole skeleton body crumple, no not the right word, just dust. Every where part of him instantly going from solid to dust, collapsing to the ground.

Tiffany dropped the fire extinguisher and screamed, staring at what was left of Stretch in horror. That’s when a bright flash of light exploded from the vortex, the whole television just turning into a white glaring light you had to turn away from. When you turned your head back to look again, Tiffany was gone. You found yourself taking a step back as the machine exploded.

The pipes breaking and flying in the air, the circuitry cracking further, and the swirling vortex seemed to almost shudder and disappear. It was as if the heart of the machine had just stopped. Red quickly turned off the television, you got the feeling his hurried actions were so you didn’t see what happened with Stretch’s remains discovered.

“Right um… we should start with looking at the hard drive on the computer and what circuitry survived,” you said, mind already racing on what to do. You were intentionally thinking of the tasks on hand. If you thought about the tasks, you didn’t have to think about Stretch dying. Then you didn’t have to think about what state Blue was in. About whether you should do anything to make all this… easier for him.

_I’m sure his family is helping him through this and let’s be honest, he may not even want to see you._


	5. Opposites

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We have now reached the point where the protagonist continues their story after the future scene which was shown in chapter 1.

“He left me flowers,” you said to yourself as you stared at your welcome matt. There was a vase of beautiful blue roses with a card saying ‘I’M SORRY’ in big letters. You got almost no sleep last night, not able to stop thinking of the bizarre behavior Blue showed. Perhaps a better word was delusional.

With a sigh you picked up the vase and went to set it on the kitchen stand. Should you try to return these to him? For now you decided to pick your battles and definitely make sure to return the expensive watch, grabbing it.

_Is it a good idea to even talk to him though?_

“His not going to hurt me,” you said to yourself, well not hurt you physically. Emotional hurt was something he did big time in the past.

You swallowed nervously as you headed to the mansion, sunlight just creeping on the horizon. The patio backdoor was unlocked, security not really an issue for skeletons who could create attacks out of bone. You tried to walk softly as you entered, not wanting to wake anyone.

“Whatcha up to kid?”

You jumped startled seeing Red on the couch, flickering through channels. You blinked for a second not believing your eyes, Red was never up this early. He was wearing red pajama pants with a black t-shirt, not even sparing you a glance. Regardless of your initial determination, you didn’t want to go to Blue’s room and deal with… what happened last night. You wanted a distraction first. So you found yourself sitting next to Red, seeing him go from channel to channel. It looked like he wasn’t really watching anything, unless you count the commercials.

“Red how did Blue react when all of you found Stretch?”

The channel flickering stop, Red giving you a side glance. 

“Not really sure if it’s my place to tell you about it. Why don’t you talk to him?”

“I know, it’s just he showed up at my guesthouse last night and well…”

“Hey, he um didn’t get violent or anything did he?” Red asked, suddenly giving you his full attention. His worry touched you for a second which disappeared under the cold certainty his concern only extended to you due to you being his ticket to get this brother back. Still though, you needed to learn what happened with Blue.

“Why would you say that?” you asked, watching the stout skeleton fidget.

“Well at first, when we found Stretch’s dust he was just crying and Pa- Classic Paps was trying to comfort him. But then we all saw the video and he um ran to his room. Came back with this letter and just started tearing it in front of us.”

“Tearing a letter isn’t really violent,” you pointed out, seeing Red pull at the leather collar on his neck.

“It’s just how he did it, screaming ‘LIAR’ over and over again. I mean after tearing that poor piece of paper into tiny pieces, he started stomped on them with his foot for a full minute. We um checked it out after he went back to his room, all we could tell was it being a letter from Tiffany.”

“Right… so he wasn’t violent, but he um was acting very weird.”

“Weird as in…?”

“As in calling me his boyfriend and talking like we were together,” you said, seeing Red’s shoulders sag.

“Damn, sounds like the guy’s not handling reality too well. You know I come from a tough timeline. Maybe not as bad as Ax- I mean San’s timeline, but it was no picnic where monsters were always out trying to kill each other,” Red said, staring off into space.

“There were these two royal guards, had a thing for one another. And one of them was killed, happens all the time. The other guard though kept talking like they were alive. Always saying crazy things like ‘oh yeah his not here, had to make a stop at Snowdin’.”

“Did he um ever get over it?” you asked, afraid of the answer.

“Define ‘over it’? Undyne, stupid bitch, thought some tough love was just needed to scream at him on how his lover was dead. It… didn’t end well, the guy became a blubbering mess killed by some random monster who saw his weak state as an opportunity. It was one of the marks against Undyne which made her lose her captain position.”

“He gave me this watch as a present, I was going to try to return it,” you said, pulling it out of your pocket.

“Keep it,” Red said, not even bothering to look at it.

“I’m not going to play along with his fantasy Red. I mean I won’t like make him face what really happened, but I can’t just pretend to actually be his boyfriend,” you said. It was bad enough Blue chose Tiffany over you. Having to live a fantasy of it not happening would only be worst.

“Didn’t you just hear what I said?”

“I did! And I already told Classic Paps we need to get a therapist for Blue. I’ll be talking to him about it after I return the watch,” you said, getting up. Red was rubbing his forehead as he got up as well.

“Guess I should come along to at least make sure things don’t get crazier than they already are. But um thanks for looking into the therapy thing,” Red said, grabbing your shoulder and giving it a squeeze. You blinked startled, Red already letting go and not looking at you.

“Seriously, he probably needs it and your um a good person for looking into it even after what happened.”

“You mean when after literally everyone in this mansion let me know I was just an annoyance. Look Red, I know you’re only coming along because I’m your only hope for getting your brother back. No need to pretend you actually care about me,” you said, turning to head to the stairs. You didn’t see the wince or downcast stare as he followed. You normally weren’t this blunt, but you were tired of well all of this. You didn’t really want to be here and you saw no need to make things easier for these guys.

_So why am I trying to help Blue?_

“Ouch kid, really don’t think I care even a little? I mean we were drinking buddies sometimes, chatted about my chopper at the bar.”

“Sure, but that was just you using me as a side distraction until Tiffany was free,” you said, then nearly jumped a foot as you heard a sharp snap. A quick turn of your head showed Red staring dumbly at the stair rail, the wood under his phalanges cracked.

“Kid, don’t um say that name around here. And SERIOUSLY, don’t mention her in front of Blue,” Red said, gently pushing you onwards in front of him. You only had a second to stare at the broken rail before Red’s pushing caused you to reach the top.

“I won’t say it in front of Blue, can’t promise the same with you. Depends on whether you keep pretending we’re actually friends,” you said, giving him a glance behind your shoulder. His red eyes wouldn’t meet yours.

“Yeah I get it, you don’t feel like hearing bullshit. Heh, guess I’m as bad as Blue at pretending things had been different,” Red said. You could have taken it further, really laid in on him about how you were treated, about the terrible nickname he gave you. But you came here to focus on Blue, not on Red. With a deep breath, you knocked on the door.

You heard a shuffling in the bed and a grunt as someone got up. A pang of guilt hit you, looks like you woke him. But Blue was always up super early. Red up early, Blue sleeping in, it was like you were in a bizarre opposite world.

Blue appeared in t-shirt and sweatpants, a yawn escaping his big mouth as he opened the door and you hated how your brain thought it was cute. His yawn turned into a big grin at seeing you, which instantly disappeared when he noticed Red. He appeared to opt out of greeting Red, putting his whole attention on you. 

“HELLO BOYFRIEND, I HOPED YOU LIKE THE ROSES,” Blue said, cocking his head to the side.

“Yeah they’re um.. nice Blue. And I’m happy to have them, but I still need to return this. It’s just too expensive a gift,” you said, awkwardly thrusting the watch in front of you. God you sucked at this. You wish you weren’t so socially awkward or you would have thought of a more clever way to do this. All your brain could come up with though is holding it out and pleading for him to take it.

“Red Why Are You Here?” Blue asked, the change in subject making you blink.

“Oh you know, just love seeing these romantic moments between love birds,” Red said with a sharp grin, hands behind his head. You gave him your best death glare at the words ‘love birds’.

“I See, Why Is Your Scent On My Boyfriend?” Blue asked, hands on hips, cyan eyes becoming smaller. Wait could Blue actually smell how Red just touched you? It was only a light touch on shoulder and back. Red was starting to sweat a few red drops, taking a step back. 

“I’m not your boyfriend.”

Both skulls turned in your direction, cyan eyes widening, red eyes fearful. You swallowed and continued speaking.

“I.. I never agreed to be your boyfriend Blue which is why I can’t take the watch. And don’t be angry with Red, his just worried about you,” you said, fudging the truth a little. You were sure Red was worried about Blue. But also probably worried about how this morning was going to end for you.

“Yeah what the kid said, I just want to make sure your ok Blue,” Red said, hands held up in a mean no harm gesture.

“Red came from a timeline where a lot of monsters lost people they… love. We were just talking about what we could do to make you feel better,” you said, taking a deep breath before reaching out and putting a hand on Blue’s shoulder just like Red did for you. Blue’s face instantly transformed at the touch, a brilliant smile and stars forming in his eyes. You smile back, which instantly died when you felt a large hand grab your waist to pull you forward.

Your touch turned into an attempted push as you saw Blue lowering his face towards you. You were suddenly aware of just how big and strong he was. He was effortlessly pulling you in.

“Blue let go, I don’t want to-“

Thump!

A bone whacked the arm holding you, letting you go. You stumbled back finding a warm body grab and hold you while a foot came out, giving Blue a good kick. The skeleton made a grunt as his thick ribcage was hit and landed on his bony butt onto the floor.

“Kid said he wasn’t interested Blue. You need to learn boundaries,” Red said, keeping the arm around your waist. You felt yourself blush at being held full body touch against the edgy skeleton. You could feel his chest rise and fall as if he had a human heart. Even felt a warm breath touch your neck. And maybe it was your imagination, but you’d swear their was a bulge rubbing against your bottom. 

With a squeak you jerked forward, Red letting you go instantly but you’d swear you heard a chuckle. Blue’s face was contorted into anger.

_Oh enough of this crap!_

You marched up to Blue, admittedly having a bigger skeleton as backup making you braver. You thrusted your hand out, seeing the skeleton flinch as if you were going to hit him. 

“Blue, take the watch!” you said, practically putting it in his face. You could have just thrown it at him, but you wanted the skeleton to acknowledge he needed to take it back. Acknowledge you weren’t together.

“I WON’T!” Blue yelled, backing off and crossing his arms. You’d think you were speaking to an eight-year-old.

“Oh yes you are! And your going to see a therapist too!”

“YOU WON’T TAKE MY ANNIVERSARY GIFT AND NOW YOU ARE YELLING AT ME TO SEE A THERAPIST! YOU’RE A TERRIBLE BOYFRIEND!”

“I’m not your freaking- UUUGGGHHHH!”

Your sentence ended with you pulling at your own hair looking skyward. Blue’s pouting turned into a look of concerned worry. He got up and placed his bony hand on your forehead.

“BOYFRIEND ARE YOU OK? YOUR ACTING A LITTLE CRAZY. DO YOU HAVE A FEVER?” Blue asked with absolutely seriousness. Now you know you heard a chuckle behind you. You were the one acting ‘crazy’? You closed your eyes, thinking carefully. You needed Blue to see a therapist, it was priority over anything else.

“Blue… I’ll agree to keep the watch if you agree to see a therapist,” you said, trying to speak calmly. The said skeleton withdrew his hand, rubbing his chin.

“WELL IF YOU REALLY WANT ME TO GO BOYFRIEND I WILL, BUT I INSIST YOU COME TOO.”

“Great! I’m glad- wait what?”

“I THINK WITH YOUR ERRATIC BEHAVIOR, WE NEED TO LOOK INTO COUPLE’S THERAPY,” Blue said with crossed arms. Now Red’s chuckle turned into bellowing laughter as he fell to the floor, grabbing his ribs. With a twitching eyebrow, you turned towards the skeleton howling with laughter on the ground.

“Red do me a favor, go fuck yourself.”

“LANGUAGE BOYFRIEND!”

“BE READY TO BE DESTROYED HUMAN!”

“No! Have mercy Papyrus!”

“NEHEHEHEHE, NEVER!”

“My Pikachu!” you cried as you watched the yellow mouse fly into the air. Game over in big letters on the screen. Just once you’d like to beat Papyrus at Super Smash Bros. Sans sometimes let you win, depending on how lazy he felt during the day. Papyrus never let you win though. Intellectually you knew they had superior reflexes compared to humans, but you still enjoyed the games.

“So when is your first couples therapy session with crazy Blue?” Sans asked, getting three sodas out of the fridge. You winced at the word ‘crazy’. You had put in your eight hours of work on the machine and was now hanging out with your Sans and Papyrus. No more Classic Sans making you do overtime depending on his whims or maybe more accurately depending on whether he could get any alone time with Tiffany.

“Don’t call him crazy ok? And the therapist actually convinced him to have one on one sessions,” you said, recalling the one-sided conversation you overheard when Blue spoke to the therapist on the phone. Classic Paps came through, getting a monster therapist named Bob. No formal title or even last name, just Bob. But this Bob got Blue to agree to a couple of sessions so he must be pretty good. Classic Paps said he got education as a therapist to help monsters cope with difficulties they ran into while living on the surface.

All in all the whole thing went smoother then you thought it would. You explained to Classic Paps how Blue was behaving and he was totally onboard on getting him help. The only awkward moment was right before you left the mansion, Classic Paps invited you to watch a Mettaton movie with him and the others. It could normally be viewed as a friendly invite… if not for the fact you were never formally invited before. 

You sometimes joined in on movie night when you lived at the mansion, but Tiffany was the one who always got an invite or mention of it. Whether it was by Classic Paps or some other skeleton. It left a bitter taste in your mouth hearing Classic Paps make the offer as if you were good friends and you politely declined. Part of you had wanted to say something else though.

Sans took a seat next to you, arm going to the back of the couch. You found your head resting on it while Papyrus brushed against you with his arm. Given what they’re been through, it took a month of two before these two were comfortable with any sort of touch. Then suddenly they were always occasionally brushing against you or ruffling your hair. You didn’t mind although sometimes it did cause a blush.

“So how’s project Battering Ram going?” Sans asked, perhaps sensing you didn’t want to discuss the Blue situation.

“Oh great! I think I finally finished the designs for the prototype. I just need to get the parts for it,” you said with a grin, going further into what Red called ‘geek talk’ to explain how it worked. You missed the shared glance Sans and Papyrus gave each other.


	6. Uber It Is

“D.. Did you reach the same conclusions as me (Y/N)?”

“I did, your right,” you said on the cell phone, speaking to Alphys on the other end. Your insistence on getting help with rebuilding the machine was taken seriously. You thought it would lead to hiring someone at your college or maybe even an experienced scientist or engineer. Instead you found out there was a monster scientist named Alphys. Papyrus and Ambassador Frisk convinced her to join your efforts in getting the machine fixed.

“If we c.. can identify the link between the ones who disappeared then we will be a lot closer on figuring out what happened.”

“Yeah, but we only know the disappearances weren’t random. We don’t know why the machine had pulled those specific people,” you said, staring at the numbers on the screen. Alphys was, to put it simply, a God send. She knew way more about monster technology then you or Red. In fact if she had been on the original ‘Machine Fixing Team’, it would have made your life a lot easier the first time you were trying to get the machine put together.

_So why didn’t Sans include her on the original team? _

“I..I’ll check the details on the physicals we g.. gave all the skeletons when they showed up. Maybe we’ll s.. see a connection,” Alphys stuttered on the other end.

“Yeah ok, I’ll see what I can do on my end. And thanks, this will be a big help,” you said, biting your tongue at questions you wanted to ask. Did Sans ever try to get you to help fix the machine the first time? Did you refuse for some reason? It wasn’t really any of your business, the important thing was she was helping now when lives were on the line.

“Oh Jeez, I’m just glad to help. No need to thank me. G.. good night!” Alphys stuttered before hanging up.

“Good night,” you said before hearing the click and shutting off your own phone. Maybe you were just thinking too much about this because Alphys seemed really nice. And it would have been great having someone so nice when you first started working with the skeletons. 

At least you now knew things you didn’t before. Based on the calculations found when downloading the machine’s data, it didn’t just grab random skeletons to teleport. Tiffany was grabbed because she was closest, but the others were… targeted. The numbers themselves only told you that much, not how they were targeted.

You heard a knock on the door, it wasn’t Blue’s knock. You still felt tense as you got up though. You opened it to find Classic Paps on your welcome mat, nervously pulling at his gloved hands.

“HUMAN I UM WANTED TO ASK A FAVOR.”

“No favors, it’s on the list,” you said slamming the door, it ended up hitting Classic Pap’s moving boot as he winced.

“PERHAPS MAKE A EXCEPTION, I ASKED BLACK AND BLUE BUT THEY-“

“Nope,” you said, trying to shut the door again. Boot still in place though as Classic Paps grimaced. His foot was going to be black and blue if he kept this up.

“HOW DID EDGE GET YOU TO DO THIS? I DON’T THINK I’M AS GOOD AT-“

“Move your boot, no means no,” you said, nudging the boot with your own foot. Instead of backing off though, the tall skeleton pushed forward. You found yourself falling on your butt as Papyrus sat in front of you on his knees, clasping his hands together while taking on a begging posture.

“PLEASE HUMAN, I DON’T WANT TO DO IT MYSELF. GETTING SLAPPED THE FIRST TIME WAS SCARY ENOUGH!”

“I told you- wait slapped?” you asked, looking him over. Who would slap this guy? 

“WELL IT WASN’T INTENTIONAL, RED HAS BEEN GETTING DRUNK A LOT MORE WITH OUR BROTHERS GONE. BLACK AND EVEN BLUE WON’T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH GETTING HIM HOME FROM GRILLBY’S. AS THE GREAT PA- UM CLASSIC PAPS, I TOOK RESPONSBILITY.”

“Red slapped you? Where? Is it serious?” you asked, sitting up right and looking Classic Paps over. There was an orange glow to Classic Pap’s cheeks.

“I HAD SOME MONSTER CANDY, IT WAS JUST A SCRATCH AND REALLY MY FAULT. YOU SEE I PICKED HIM UP LIKE I DO WITH MY BROTHER. HE.. HE THOUGHT I WAS EDGE FOR A MINUTE, BUT THEN GOT ANGRY WHEN HE REALIZED I WASN’T AND STARTED FLAYING ABOUT. IT WAS AN ACCIDENT.”

“Yeah ok, but now you make this sound dangerous. It would be a lot more then a scratch if I got hit,” you said, crossing your arms. Classic Paps didn’t hesitate in his response.

“He Would Never Hurt You,” Classic Paps said, voice lowering and more solemn.

“Let me guess, because we’re all just good friends and he likes me so much,” you said with a huff. You really weren’t sure if you could stand a bullshit line about being friends.

“No, Because You Are Our Only Chance to See Our Family Again.”

You winced, suddenly having trouble looking at Classic Pap’s face. It wasn’t just the words, but how he said them. Like you were this savior who was going to fix everything, rescue everyone gone. It made you pause in saying no again.

“You really can’t get Black or Blue to get him instead?”

“BLACK REFUSES TO PUT UP WITH DRUNK RED. AND BLUE… HAS BEEN DISTANT WITH ALL OF US,” Classics Paps said, not getting up from the floor. You didn’t want to just say yes. It was on the list damn it, no asking you for favors. It was important you stuck with your demands or these guys would walk all over you, again.

_It doesn’t have to be a favor though…_

“Pay me,” you said, holding a hand out. Classic Paps blinked, looking from your hand to your face.

“I UM FOR WHAT?”

“For picking up Red, it’s fifty bucks. You pay me fifty bucks, I’ll go get Red and bring him home,” you said, the dollar amount randomly picked at the top of your head. You really didn’t care about the money. But maybe Classic Paps would change his mind and do it himself if you demand money.

“OH THANK YOU HUMAN! HERE YOU GO, PLEASE BE QUICK,” Classic Paps said, slapping not fifty but sixty bucks in your hand quickly with a smile. Or maybe you should realize how absolutely stupid it was thinking a filthy rich monster would be worried about losing chump change over this. You’re reminded of a time when Sans said you had plenty of nerd smarts, not so much smarts smarts.

“I um yeah, ok. I’ll go do it now,” you said with a sigh as you got up. It wasn’t a favor damn it, you were getting paid. Just keep telling yourself that… seriously who were you kidding?

Classic Paps shot up, nearly causing you to stumble back. He reached out and picked you up. You found yourself grabbing his shoulders for support as he swung you in the air.

“THANK YOU HUMAN! I SHALL AWAIT YOUR ARRIVAL OF MY LAZY, EDGY COUSIN! NEHEHEHEYE!” Classic Paps said before dropping you back to the ground. You unsteadily took a couple of steps and found yourself nearly falling, grabbing onto Classic Paps armored chest for support. The orange glow was back in his cheeks as he grabbed your waist to steady you. You let go blushing, taking a step back.

“Sorry, you um don’t normally do that,” you said, another sentence almost spoken.

_You only do that with everyone else but me._

“YES MY APOLOGIES HUMAN FOR GETTING OVEREXCITED. PLEASE HURRY BACK, I’LL BE WAITING,” Classic Paps said, turning and leaving with a salute.

“Sure Classic Paps,” you said with a sigh, as you turned to find your car keys.

It wasn’t like this would be the first time you picked up Red from Grillby’s. It would just be the first time since he called you that… nickname. You found yourself in Grillby’s parking lot, starting at the building for five minutes. Everything was supposed to be different now. You weren’t here as Tiffany Understudy. So why did you feel like you were about to follow through with a regular routine?

“If he calls me it, I leave him here and give Classic Paps his money back,” you muttered to yourself. Promise made to yourself, you finally got out of the car.

It was different inside, Red didn’t sit at the bar like normal. He was in a corner table drinking alone. And what was really strange was the look of relief you saw some monster customers give you. Just how much more trouble was this guy making?

His back was turned to everyone so he didn’t notice your approach. There were empty shot glasses all over the table. For some reason you felt a little endanger as you cleared your throat.

“Fuck off Paps.”

You were starting to see why Classic Paps was so desperate for help.

“I’m not Paps, but if you don’t want a ride home suit yourself,” you said, already turning to leave. Honestly you were glad for the cold shoulder. Now you could tell Classic Paps you tried but had no success.

“Whoah hold up (Y/N)!”

The words accompanied a big hand grabbing your shoulder, so much for getting out scot free. You found yourself pulled and pushed into a chair next to Red.

“Sorry kid, thought you were Paps coming by to make me go home. What will you have? It’s on me,” Red said with a wink. You blinked for a second, Red winking at you was weird. He never winked at you before.

“Oh um nothing, I’m just here to pick you up,” you said, also weirded out by the offer. You hung out with him at Grillby’s before, but it was always on separate checks. 

“Ah don’t be like that, HEY GRILLBY! Can you get over here? Kid needs a drink!” Red yelled, waving his hand. You heard footsteps and felt heat waves touching your backside.

“Your cut off Red,” Grillby said, voice dead serious.

“It’s not for me though, it’s for (Y/N) here.”

“You never order something for (Y/N).”

“Yeah well now I am, is that a problem?” Red asked, voice turning low and dangerous. The red eyes appeared to glow brighter. Smile still in place, but the sharp teeth became more pronounced.

“I’ll have a club soda with lime,” you said, hoping to put an end to the discussion. Red stopped his glaring to give you a skeptical glance.

“Um kid it’s a monster bar serving all kinds of magic infused drinks you’ll never find in any other part of the world and you seriously want to go with… club soda?”

“I’ve ordered club soda all the time here before,” you said defensively. And the so called ‘magic infused drinks’ cost over five hundred dollars a glass. Well at least for humans anyway, monsters got them at regular price. Something about the magic in them needed for monsters, but being just a recreational drink for humans.

“Tell you what, I’ll add a little something into the club soda and consider it on the house,” Grillby said, patting you on the shoulder. You think it was his way of saying thanks for making sure things didn’t turn ugly.

“Just remember I need to drive Red home tonight,” you said, a little nervous. You only saw a couple of humans be able to afford the magic infused drinks and one of them started singing and dancing like a loon after having one.

“Don’t worry, the effect will be subtle and won’t affect your driving,” Grillby said with a wave while walking off.

“Yeah kid, live a little. I can drive us back if you’re too out of it,” Red said, sharp tooth grin friendly again.

“I don’t think so,” you said, eyeing the shot glasses.

“Pfft, some of those are from hours ago, I’ve been in this place literally half the day.”

“What made you want to stay here half the day?” you asked, thinking of how little he saw Red when working on the destroyed machine. You’d think he’d hang around the basement more to help him try to fix it.

“Oh you know, contemplating life. The mysteries of the universe,” Red said with a wave of his hand.

You heard a snort behind you, turning to see it came from a dog monster in a pink shirt and military cargo pants seating nearby.

“You got something to say dog breath?” Red asked, eyes glowing brighter again with his glare. You nervously looked from one to the other, knowing for sure the trouble coming was not worth fifty dollars to suffer. Oh wait you got sixty dollars, nope, still not worth it.

“You’ve been trying to pick fights with any tough monster whose walked in here- oh wait, I mean have a friendly fight match,” the dog monster said, spitting out the words.

“What? Undyne is the only monster allowed to spar with others around here?”

“Undyne doesn’t have your LV. Might want to keep those urges to hurt in check.”

“What did you just say?!” growled Red getting up, chair hitting the floor. You saw a total of three dog monsters get up from their own chairs, fur rising up in aggression. Red took a step forward and you found yourself getting up, hand on his chest. You could feel the warmth coming off his bones from under the sweater.

“Red just let it go, please. His not worth it,” you said, knowing full well he could swat you away like a fly. 

You didn’t know what possessed you to interfere here. It was just that Classic Paps did pay you to get him home which meant you were supposed to stop him from doing something stupid.

_He Would Never Hurt You._

“You afraid of me too? Think I’m just some angry thug,” Red growled, looking down at you. You'd be lying if you said you didn't have a urge to jump back.

“I don’t think you’re a thug, but sometimes I am a little afraid. But that’s my issue, I need to learn not to get scared just because you get angry,” you said, trying to be honest. In all fairness Red got angry a lot, at least at the mansion. It never bothered Tiffany as far as you could tell, but sometimes you saw him with a giant scowl on his face looking ready to rip someone apart. And fight down a urge to shy away when he directed the scowl your way. 

Red gave you an unreadable look for a second, eyes studying you intently. Then the grin came back as he glanced down at the hand still on his chest.

“Shesh kid, you can’t seem to keep your hands off me,” Red said, leaning in and giving you another wink. His breath smelled of cinnamon, first Black and now Red, did all monsters use mouthwash or did magic just give them nice breath? You drew back your hand, feeling your cheeks turn red.

“I wasn’t- I was just trying to stop you-“

“I know kid, my bad Doggo. I’ll try to behave,” Red said, putting hands up in a surrendering gesture before going to grab his chair. 

“I’m glad to hear because I would want (Y/N) to have at least one taste of this before having to kick you out,” Grillby said, walking up with tray in hand and a drink on it. It almost looked like a normal club soda with lime… except for the glowing orange, green, and yellow lights inside it.

“Wow, thanks Grillby,” you said, seating down as well. You couldn’t stop yourself from being a little excited. You were about to have your first magic infused drink.

“Make sure to take it slow kid. Those things can pack a whallop,” Red said, leaning back and looking ready to nap in his chair. You’d never think a minute ago he was about to go Fight Club rage on three dog monsters.

“Relax, it’s subtle, but you should drink slow to enjoy the taste (Y/N),” Grillby said with a smile before walking off. You took a deep breath before having your first sip. First you felt a soothing lime, then a zesty lemon, and next a sweet orange taste. Your taste buds appear to randomly jump from one flavor to the other. You had a couple of more sips, the random flavors continue to be felt in your mouth.

“This is pretty good,” you exclaimed, taking a closer look at the drink. It was kinda cool drinking something literally glowing in front of you. Red was covering his mouth, stifling a laughter but not having much luck.

“What?” you asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Your tongue is glowing,” Red snickered, pointing to your mouth. Your eyes widened and you quickly pulled out your phone, turning the camera on yourself. Sure enough, a yellow glow was coming from your mouth.

“Awesome, hey take a picture. I want to send it to Sans and Papyrus,” you said, quickly handed it to him. There was a flicker of a frown, quickly replaced with the usual grin as Red held the phone up.

“Sure thing kid, now make sure to stick that sucker out,” Red said, tapping a button. You gave him a raspberry, not the most mature way of doing it. You were pretty sure you heard a couple of monsters snicker behind you. Red handed back the phone and you text the image over to your friends as you finished your drink. True to his word, Grillby didn’t bring a bill and you both headed to the car.

“Gotta say, I’m surprise Classic Paps got you to agree to pick me up. Thought you weren’t going to do any more favors,” Red said as the two of you got in the car.

“It’s not a favor,” you retorted quickly, as you hit the gas pedal. 

“Oh?”

“I’m um getting paid to pick you up. I charged Classic Paps fifty bucks,” you said, nervously glanced his way. You just realized maybe it wasn’t the best idea to let Red know your company came with a payment fee. Whatever worries you had went out the window when he ripped with laughter, banging the car dashboard.

“Oh fuck kid, that’s priceless. Speaking of prices, you should make it a hundred next time,” Red said, wiping tears from his eyes.

“Who says there’s going to be a next time?” you asked, but you were smiling.

“Oh please, you had a fun time. And Grillby likes you, would have offered you that free drink a lot sooner. But Tiffany always pleaded sweetly for one and he could only show so much charity.”

There was an awkward silence, you don’t think Red meant to mention Tiffany, especially after telling you not to say her name. You felt a sudden depression when realizing something. This was temporary, once Tiffany returned it was back to her getting magic infused drinks and you sticking to regular club soda.

There would be some friction of course when she returned, no doubt she would be on thin ice. But even after seeing the video, you had no doubt about them taking her back. After all, they were soul bonded, stuck together as far as you could understand.

The silence was starting to get to you and you opened your mouth to say something, Red though got there first.

“I liked what you said back there, about being afraid of me but trying to work on it. It was… sincere, you know I asked someone the same question. They gave me some line about wanting us to work together on my anger issues, help me learn to overcome it.”

“That’s not a bad thing, it sounds like someone cared about you enough to want to help you,” you said, giving him a side glance. He was staring out the window, one hand under his chin.

“It was bullshit, they didn’t do a thing to help me stop getting mad. Thinking back on it, they seemed to like my temper. Fucking liar.”

Back to awkward silence because really, what did you say to that? Luckily you reached the mansion in five minutes, Red opening the door before the car came to a complete stop.

“This was fun kid, let’s do it again,” Red said, giving you a backwards wave as he headed to the front door.


	7. Wish on a Star

“RED WELCOME BACK! I’M GLAD TO SEE-“

“-I’m going to bed.”

Red didn’t even spare Classic Paps a wave before heading up the stairs. The smile on Classic Pap’s face disappeared. You found yourself feeling awkward, witnessing how these remaining skeletons were not getting along. Classic Paps was staring at the hallway Red disappeared to.

_Mmmaayybbeee I should leave before, oops too late._

“(Y/N)! THANK YOU FOR GETTING RED,” Classic Paps said, grin returning as he approached you. You smiled back politely, already thinking of heading to see Sans and Papyrus to talk about the drink you had.

“PERHAPS YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE A MOVIE TOGETHER? I’VE TRIED TO KEEP THE TRADITION OF GREAT METTATON MOVIE NIGHTS GOING, BUT HAVING TROUBLE SINCE THE OTHERS… Have Stopped Showing,” Classic Paps said, last words coming out softer. You wanted to feel sorry for him, you really did. But there it was again, an invite which never came before. An invite which was only happening because Tiffany wasn’t here and enough was enough.

“Classic Paps, I’m not sure you realize this, but you’re kind of being insulting,” you said, not feeling angry but annoyed.

‘OH I’M SORRY (Y/N), IT IS A FAVOR ISN’T IT? I CAN PAY YOU FIFTY DOLLARS AGAIN!”

“No! That’s not what I meant, I mean-“

“OH I SEE, NEHEHE, RAISING THE PRICE. VERY WELL HUMAN BUT I WON’T GO HIGHER THEN A HUNDRED-“

“-Why now!?”

The grin was gone again, Classic Paps blinking and looking completely clueless. Of course he was clueless. Did you seriously have to spell out the treatment you got around here?

“I lived in the mansion for six months and not once Classic Paps, not once did you ever invite me to movie night! Sure you guys let me join, but I was never actually invited. You only seem to be doing it now because the person you want to invite isn’t here!”

Now the tall skeleton was staring at the floor, playing with his gloved hands.

“Well (Y/N) You Bring Up a Good Point, But If I May Interject- You Never Seemed to Want to be Friends.”

“Excue me,” you said, staring at him incredulously. You suddenly remembered all the times you tried to do small talk with Classic Paps. All the times you hinted at how you thought a movie night was a good idea.

“You Never Finished My Friendship Spaghetti And Tiffany Told Me the Truth. It Wasn’t Because of Allergies, it Was Because You Really Weren’t Interested in Being Friends,” Classic Paps said, crossing his arms and looking down at you. As if YOU were the wrong party here.

“I didn’t finish your Friendship Spaghetti because it gave me food poisoning and I had to throw up in the toilet!”

“Tiffany Pointed out we Never Actually Saw You Throw it up. I Know You’re Not Really Allergic and no One Else Got Sick From-“

“Oh Screw This!”

Classic Paps flinched back as you moved past him. At least now you knew why Classic Paps barely spoke to you. Tiffany really did want all the attention on herself. And even after what she just pulled, he still believes her? Well screw it, it was time Classic Paps got a good dose of hard truth. You headed to the basement, machine parts lying in careful order on the floor. You quickly grabbed a prism crystal, shaped into a heart, and headed back upstairs.

Classic Paps had closed the front door, giving you a wary look at your return. As if you were some rabid animal about to attack him. If only he was so lucky, you were going to make rabid animals look like cute Pokémon.

“EVERYONE GET OUT OF THEIR ROOMS AND COME DOWN HERE,” you nearly screamed, feeling your voice go a little raw. You heard some rustling movement upstairs, Blue was the first to show.

“BOYFRIEND WHY ARE YOU-“

“Stand over there next to Classic Paps,” you said, pointing a finger. You were not going to deal with imaginary relationships tonight. Even though he didn’t have a throat, Blue swallowed nervously and did what you said.

Red and Black showed up a second later, both giving you the same wary look. Understandable, in the six months you have been here you never yelled so loud before. They walked downstairs while giving Classic Paps a silent ‘What the hell’s going on?’. Classic Pap’s own confused shrug showed him just as clueless.

“Right, so let me start off by saying I’m holding a very fragile and important piece of the machine,” you said, letting them get a glimpse of the prism crystal. All eyes were focused on it now instead of you.

“And if I were to throw this against the ground and shatter it, the machine could never be fixed,” you said, blatantly lying. Actually the prism was strictly decoration, something to make rainbow lights while the machine was running. The way their jaws went slack, staring at you with horror though said they fell for it.

“But don’t worry, I won’t do such a terrible thing as long as everyone answers one question with absolute honesty. That’s it, all you have to do is answer one question,” you said, sweeping a pointed finger at them.

“Um no problem kid, look don’t do anything rash. J..just ask your question,” Red said, pulling at his collar.

“Sure thing, you can answer first Red. Back when Classic Paps here made Friendship Spaghetti for the first time, how did it taste?”

“I.. I’m sorry what?”

“Classic Pap’s very first Friendship Spaghetti, how… did… it… taste?” you asked, saying each word slowly. Red sweat drops began dripping down his skull. In fact other then Classic Paps, all the other skeletons were starting to show sweat drops. Classic Paps himself looked expectantly at Red, smile back in place. Red appeared to shrivel under Classic Pap’s happy expression.

“Well… I mean.. it’s been a while..”

You raised your hand high, positioning yourself to break the prism.

“OK, I don’t know how the damn stuff tasted!” Red yelled, phalanges raised in the air. Classic Paps wasn’t smiling no more.

“RED HOW COULD YOU FORGET THE TASTE OF OUR VERY FIRST FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI MEAL!” Classic Paps said, hands on hips.

“HIS NOT SAYING HE FORGOT, HIS SAYING HE NEVER ATE IT,” Black said with a roll of his eyes. Classic Paps eyes went so wide, he almost looked like a Sans.

“YOU NEVER ATE IT!?”

“ACTUALLY CLASSIC PAPS I DIDN’T EAT YOUR FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI EITHER, I’M SORRY! S..STRETCH SAID WE SHOULD STORE IT IN THE VOID TO EAT LATER. O.. ONLY WE UM NEVER BOTHERED TO PULL IT OUT,” Blue said, nervously pulling at his blue bandanna.

“I ALSO DIDN’T TASTE THE FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI, MY TASTE BUDS CAN ONLY SAVOR THE MOST REFINE AND BEST FOODS THERE ARE. NOT THE SLOP YOU WERE TRYING TO SHOVE AT US!”

_Says the guy who thinks chicken should be burnt until it’s a lump of coal before eating._

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND! DID YOU ALL SEND YOUR FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI TO THE VOID!?”

“YES, SORRY!”

“YES, NOT SORRY!”

“I um, yeah pretty much.”

“WHAT ABOUT YOUR BROTHERS, I’M SURE EDGE-“

“-nope,” Red interrupted with a sigh. Black and Blue didn’t even have to say anything, their downcast eyes said it all.

“WELL, AT LEAST MY BROTHER AND TIFFANY-“

“-nope, Sans voided his own and Tiffany’s Friendship Spaghetti meal as well,” you said, placing the prism crystal on a nearby coffee table.

“I Don’t Understand,” Classic Paps said, scratching his skull. You approached and gave his shoulder a pat. A part of you felt bad doing this, but you were tired of being the scapegoat. Especially when you didn’t do anything to deserve it.

“Well it’s simple Classic Paps, you basically decided to be friends with everyone but the one person who actually ate your Friendship Spaghetti,” you said, turning and heading to the backdoor. You didn’t spare them a glance before making your exit.

_“AND THEN MY BOYFRIEND WALKED OFF LIKE ALL COOL LIKE. MAKING THIS AWESOME EXIT!”_

_“It sounds like (Y/N) is standing up for himself.”_

_“I KNOW RIGHT! I’M REALLY PROUD OF HIM!”_

_“Blue… do you know why he was so upset with Papyrus?”_

_“OH HIS CLASSIC PAPS NOW, NOW THE UMMM OTHER ONE GETS TO BE CALLED PAPYRUS.”_

_“My apologies, do you know why (Y/N) was upset with Classic Paps?”_

_“WELL… CLASSIC PAPS HAD INVITED MY BOYFRIEND TO SEE A MOVIE THAT NIGHT.”_

_“Something he normally didn’t when the mansion was more crowded.”_

_“WELL YEAH, CLASSIC PAPS STILL WANTED TO SEE MOVIES TOGETHER BUT I JUST… DON’T LIKE HANGING AROUND THE OTHERS. AND I THINK NO ONE JOINED THE NIGHT BEFORE.”_

_“Why didn’t you want to hang out with the others?”_

_“I… I JUST DIDN’T FEEL LIKE IT, BUT IF I KNEW MY BOYFRIEND WAS GOING TO BE THERE I WOULD HAVE JOINED! IT’S JUST CLASSIC PAPS WAS NEVER INTERESTED IN DOING FRIEND STUFF WITH HIM BEFORE.”_

_“So (Y/N) got upset because Classic Pap’s invite to do ‘friend stuff’ only happened due to the absence of others.”_

_“I… Yeah I Guess.”_

_“(Y/N) feelings were hurt because he was only treated kindly because certain others were missing.”_

_“…I Don’t Want to Talk About This Anymore.”_

_“Blue… you only started calling (Y/N) ‘boyfriend’ after the machine broke and people disappeared, do you think that hurts his feelings?”_

_“I Know I Messed Up, I Should Have Called Him it Sooner. It’s ok, We Can Just Pretend I Said it Before the Machine Broke.”_

_“Pretending something to be one thing instead of the other can hurt a person Blue. Especially when they didn’t agree to the pretending.”_

“So basically you outed everyone as not eating Classic Pap’s friendship spaghetti,” Sans said with a chuckle.

“BROTHER DON’T LAUGH! MY COUSIN MUST BE VERY HURT NO ONE ELSE ATE HIS FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI,” Papyrus said with a wagging finger. All three of you were in their cabin, drinking hot chocolate while sitting on the couch. Netflix currently showing the new Aladdin movie. Grillby’s magical drink was fun, but hot chocolate while watching a movie with your friends was more your scene.

“Screw them! Don’t forget they didn’t invite us to the dinner… or any others. Sounds like Karma is finally coming back at them,” Sans said darkly before taking a sip of his hot chocolate. You found yourself nearly snuggling against San’s large torso, hot chocolate and body warmth making you drowsy. Normally you’d be too self-conscious to snuggle with, well, anyone. 

But while you were proud of yourself for setting things straight with Classic Paps, you were also exhausted. Sans put a hand on your shoulder, giving you a squeeze. Him and his brother exchanged looks and nodded. You missed it, but you didn’t miss the way Sans cleared his throat.

“So um (Y/N), have you heard of those singles get togethers which happen sometimes? Like the ones posted online where singles get together, chat, and maybe exchange numbers if they find someone they like?”

“Hmmm yeah I heard of them,” you said yawning, tempted to sleep through the rest of the movie.

“Well we um… signed you up for one.”

“Yeah you don’t- What?!”

“YES, THE MONTHLY GAY SINGLES NIGHT AT THE STAR CROSSED BAR! GUYS IN THEIR TWENTIES AND THIRTIES INVITED!” Papyrus said, almost sounding like he was speaking in a commercial. You blinked stupidly, looking from one skeleton to the other.

“I’m going to say it again- what?”

The skeletons exchanged another glance before Sans turned to come face to face to you. The big red eye looking down at you with concern.

“Look kid it’s like this… when you get project Battering Ram done, it means me and my bro will be leaving to head home. And we’re worried about you.”

“YES (Y/N), YOU’RE OUR BEST FRIEND AND WE’LL FOREVER BE GRATEFUL TO YOU. BUT WHEN WE LEAVE, WE Don’t Want You To Be Alone,” Papyrus said, last words coming out softer.

“Assuming we do get everyone else back, you know those jerks will ignore you again. Well except for Blue, but considering his acting nuts, I don’t want him to be the guy you look to as a friend. We just want you to um…”

“TRY TO BROADEN YOUR HORIZONS! MEET NEW PEOPLE AND FORM NEW BONDS! CONNECT YOURSELF WITH OTHERS AND HAVE THEM CONNECT WITH YOU! HUNT FOR FRIENDSHIP WITH A PASSION-“

“-Ok ok I get it! And you um think going to this singles thing would be good for me?” you asked, suddenly finding your hot chocolate in your lap fascinating. Other than Blue which turned into a disaster, you never tried to date before. You could see their point though, hanging out with other people would probably take the sting out of missing Sans and Papyrus.

“Just give it a shot kid. If it doesn’t work out, we can try something else,” Sans said with a gentle smile. You’d think a skeleton with razor sharp teeth, a cracked skull, and one giant red orb couldn’t pull off a gentle smile. But somehow he did it while giving your shoulder a squeeze.

You were never the type to check yourself in the mirror or at least you used to never be the type. Ever since you committed to the singles meetup thing which was happening tonight, you’ve taken an extra minute in the bathroom just to judge your own appearance. 

One of those said judging sessions was taking place in a restroom at college right after class. Then you saw someone else in the mirror who made you turn around so fast you almost got whiplash.

“Hey there (Y/N),” Scott said with a grin. Dark hair and skinny, he fit the typical appearance of a student majoring in engineering who got straight A’s in all his classes. One look at the guy would make you think he was totally harmless.

“Still working with those fucking disgusting monsters?”

Of course, appearances can be deceiving.

“I see you decided to come back Scott,” you said with a sigh, really not wanting to deal with this. You and Scott both applied for San’s assistant position when he advertised it at the college. Working on monster technology under a monster was practically a gold star on the resume for future endeavors. Besides a brief job interview, the real test was a physics math problem Sans had everyone take. You passed, Scott didn’t, and suddenly Scott hated monsters a lot more.

“You shouldn’t be so sensitive, it was just a note,” Scott said with a smile which looked way too fake. Scott’s insults about monsters graduated to leaving notes in your backpack on how you were a ‘fucking monster lover’. Luckily a security guard caught him one time. Should have been expelled, but he was good at sucking up and being apologetic when his academic career was on the line. So instead he was sent to a sister campus to take a semester of classes.

“Look Scott I have enough things to deal with. Just leave me alone,” you said, passing by him to get out of there.

“There you go again, thinking you’re so great just because they chose you,” Scott said crossing his arms.

_Trust me, Classic Sans never went out of his way to make me feel great._

“Whatever,” you said as you went through the door. You didn’t want to waste time with the guy. And hopefully this would be the last interaction you two had.

“Shirt wrinkle free, no stains, and deodorant working,” you muttered to yourself, looking down at your clothes after stepping out of the car. The Star Crossed Bar was in the outskirts of town, the edge of a forest sighted from the building. The brick building itself looked mundane except for a lit-up sign of a shooting star.

You already saw several other cars and people walking in. There were a few women, but it was mostly guys, no doubt coming to the advertised event. You were conscious of how you appeared to be one of the younger ones, just barely meeting the criteria to be part of the ‘twenties’ group invited to this.

Trying to swallow your nervousness down, you approached the front door and gave your name to the bouncer. A bald guy who sort of reminded you of Sans with his large size and big biceps. He gestured you in and you found yourself already wanting to leave.

It was too crowded, you could barely hear a thing, and the deodorant was going into overdrive to help you with the heat. Rainbow lights danced from the ceiling with wood bar standing at the opposite end. You found yourself elbowed and pushed as others chatted with each other. You didn’t even know how to start a conversation with anyone here.

_Hey how’s it going? My skeleton monster buddies signed me up for this!_

“I’ll get one drink, then I’m outa here,” you muttered to yourself as you pushed your way to the bar. You were sure to be grilled by Sans and Papyrus so you needed to be able to say honestly you did hang around at least a little while.

Apparently the bar gods were favoring you because just as you reached bar someone left their seat. You took it with a sigh of relief, waiting until the bartender came your way. A cute guy with wavy dark hair.

“What will it be?”

“Club soda with lime.”

“Not exactly living dangerously over there.”

The response didn’t come from the bartender, but from the guy next to you. An athletic man with bright red hair lit up with the bar lights, dressed in jeans and white t-shirt. He was giving you a teasing smile. The bartender was already turning to fulfill your order.

“Hey it works for me. And you should see what it tastes like at Grillby’s, the magic infused version is awesome,” you said, still recalling the flavor explosion it caused.

“You had a magic infused drink?” the guy asked, suddenly appearing a lot more interested.

“Well yeah, only once. But it was crazy, here let me show you a picture,” you said, pulling out your cell phone. And that’s how you were able to get into a conversation with someone at this singles event. He laughed at the glowing tongue you had and asked you how it tasted. His name was Brian and before you knew it, you two were really hitting it off.

He was a sales rep, dealt with selling food supplements specifically. You mentioned being an engineer major, but kept your assistant job quite. Going into detail about a machine letting people travel to alternate timelines would probably make the guy think you were just crazy. Still though you two ended up chatting for over an hour.

“You know what (Y/N), you really made me glad I came here. How about we exchange numbers?”

You blinked stupidly for a second. Your expectations of getting a phone number was zero before you had walked through the door. Did it really just take showing a glowing tongue to get one? Brian cocked his head to the side.

“I mean… unless you don’t want to?”

“Oh no! I mean yes I’d like to exchange numbers,” you said with a grin, fighting the urge to slap yourself for sounding like an idiot.

“Great, let’s definitely try to get together for a date-“

“THERE YOU ARE!”

You hadn’t noticed it. You didn’t notice how the bar got quieter as you chatted with Brian. Neither you nor Brian noticed the large monster walking towards you, too engrossed in your conversation. It was only after Blue was right there, dressed in leather jacket and jeans that you realized he was here.

“WHOSE THIS BOYFRIEND?” Blue asked, putting a hand on your shoulder as he grinned at Brian. This was the first time you truly wished the ground would just swallow you up whole.


	8. Getting a Text

“Holy crap, it’s a monster! I didn’t know they come to this stuff!”

“Wait did he just call that guy boyfriend, man I was hoping to get his number.”

“Maybe they’re looking for a third to shack up with.”

All the comments went over your head, your attention focused on Brian who was frowning as he glanced from you to Blue.

“Hey sorry, I didn’t know you were already seeing someone. Otherwise I wouldn’t have been asking for a number,” Brian said with an awkward smile. He was trying to make the words sound like a joke, but to your ears it sounded more like an accusation.

“OH IT’S ALRIGHT, MY BOYFR-“

“-I need air,” you interrupted, brushing off the hand on your should and almost running to the front door. You think someone called out to you, but you couldn’t be sure. The fresh air outside and lack of room heat would normally refresh you, but instead you found yourself nearly shaking. A corner of your brain noted how Blue’s bike was parked next to your Honda as you walked up to your car. You found yourself resting your forehead on the glass, taking deep breaths.

“Boyfriend You Alright?”

He was there behind you, ten feet away. Seriously how did this giant guy sneak up on you? You found yourself swallowing, trying to get rid of your dry throat.

“That was the first time someone asked,” you said as you turned. Now you were shaking and you just couldn’t stop. It wasn’t the cold air, just the… emotions running through you. Blue cocked his head to the side as his bony forehead scrunched up.

“FIRST TIME WHAT?”

“The first anyone offered to give me their number. The first time someone was interested in dating me.”

“YOU’RE BEING SILLY, YOU’RE MY BOYFRIEND AND WE DATED ALL-“

“-NO WE DIDN’T!” you shouted, noticing a couple of people staring at the two of you. You were way beyond caring at this point.

“When you only want to meet in secret, when you’re too ashamed to be with the guy that you don’t even want to tell your own fucking brother, IT’S NOT DATING!” you shouted, seeing Blue flinch and look to the ground.

“And you’re definitely not boyfriends with that guy. Hell we probably weren’t even ever friends! I was just damn TIFFANY UNDERSTUDY!”

Now Blue was staring at you, cyan orbs shrinking to pin-points. His large hands turning into fists as he stared at you.

“P..please d..don’t say that-“

“-But it’s what I am isn’t it! I’m the one you guys pick when she’s not around. The one you suddenly call ‘boyfriend’ when you don’t want to be with her. But for the first time Blue, some guy didn’t see me as a replacement, as an understudy,” you said, pointing a finger at the bar.

“For the first time, a guy wanted to date me (Y/N)! For the first time, I wasn’t second choice or someone to kill time with because the girl they really wanted was occupied. And.. and you ruined it,” you said, feeling your cheeks turn wet. Shoot, at what point did you start crying? You weren’t even sure, you just couldn’t stop it.

“(Y/N) I.. I’m Sorry, Please Don’t Cry,” Blue said, approaching with hands up, eye lights no longer small. You backed away, finding yourself wiping the tears and snot with a sleeve.

“J..just leave me alone. Freaking Tiffany Understudy, guess I should just get used to the role,” you said, feeling both stupid and shitty. You took a seat on the grass, still trying to get the damn snot off your face with your sleeve. Seriously, crying like a baby over the missed chance at getting a guy’s number. What was wrong with you? It probably wouldn’t have even worked out. 

“I.. I’LL FIX IT! J..JUST STAY HERE OK! I’LL BE RIGHT BACK,” Blue said, already turning and dashing back to the bar. His huge bone figure moving way too fast for someone so large.

“I Shouldn’t Have Done It,” Blue muttered to himself as he surveyed the bar crowd. He shouldn’t have eavesdropped when Sans and Papyrus were talking about the singles night meetup while strolling outside. He shouldn’t have tailed you when you headed to the bar. There were a lot of things he shouldn’t have done.

_Pretending something to be one thing instead of the other can hurt a person Blue. Especially when they didn’t agree to the pretending._

“I Hurt Him, I Hurt Him Again,” Blue muttered, eyes not finding the red head who (Y/N) had been talking to. He was always hurting you. Why couldn’t he do anything right? The therapist tried to warn him, but he just wanted <strike>to get another chance at choosing (Y/N) instead</strike> to be with you. He didn’t want to put you through pain. <strike>But he did want to bring her pain.</strike>

With the guy no where in sight, he dashed back outside and in a single leap jumped on a large truck nearby. He ignored the angry yelling of the bouncer as his night vision instantly took into account every person heading towards their vehicle. It took less then a minute to spot the guy, athletic and good looking, no wonder you were happy to have him interested.

“I’m Good Looking Too,” Blue muttered to himself as he jumped down and jogged towards the guy. At least he though you found him good looking. You always smiled when seeing his face before... the letter. <strike>She’d smile too, but she was always smiling. First clue it was fake like her, she used it too much.</strike>

“EXCUSE ME, UM HELLO,” Blue called out as he got close to the young man. The guy turned with a raised eyebrow taking a couple steps back towards his car. Blue tried not to feel insulted, he knew some humans found monsters a rather intimidating sight and seemed to always get fearful at first.

“Oh right you’re (Y/N)’s boyfriend, can I help you with something?” the guy said, tone clearly stating- ‘What the hell do you want from me?’.

“A.. ABOUT THAT, I’M ACTUALLY JUST A FRIEND.”

_Hell we probably weren’t even ever friends! _

“He Didn’t Mean It,” Blue muttered to himself, momentarily forgetting he was supposed to converse with this human.

“I’m sorry? Didn’t mean what?”

“OH UM NOTHING! WHAT I’M TRYING TO SAY IS WE’RE JUST FRIENDS AND I’VE UM… BEEN TOO OVERPROTECTIVE. IT’S WHY I SAID THAT STUFF AT THE BAR,” Blue said, scratching the back of his skull. It was sort of the truth. He had wanted to <strike>possess</strike> protect (Y/N). He just went about it wrong.

“YOU SEE My Brother Was Killed Recently,” Blue said, last words coming out softer. Wait, the word ‘killed’ wasn’t totally correct. It implied someone intentionally killed him. It was an accident, shouldn’t he have said a different word? <strike>But it feels so right…</strike>

“Oh God, I’m so sorry,” the man said, appearing at lost for words. 

“IT’S ALRIGHT, (Y/N) HAS BEEN TRYING TO HELP ME AND TONIGHT I WELL… SCREW THINGS UP FOR HIM. YOU WERE ABOUT TO EXCHANGE NUMBERS AND I RUINED IT. I’M HOPING IF I GIVE YOU HIS NUMBER THEN YOU’LL GIVE HIM A CHANCE.”

(Y/N) has been trying to help him. Getting him to go to therapy, trying to fix the machine so the rest of his family was returned. And in thanks Blue hurts him and makes him cry.

“I don’t know, I mean I’m not looking for drama,” the guy said, scratching his chin. Translation- he wasn’t looking for Blue to make drama.

“THERE WON’T BE ANY DRAMA! I PROMISE, I’M GOING TO GIVE HIM SPACE FROM NOW ON,” Blue said, nearly winced at saying the words. An instinct in him screamed to chase this human away and keep (Y/N) for himself. (Y/N) didn’t want him as a <strike>friend</strike> boyfriend though and he had to accept it was all his own fault.

“Well I don’t want to mess up your friendship or anything. How about you give me his number and I’ll text him. We’ll see how things go from there. Name is Brian by the way,” Brian said, as he pulled out his phone.

“NICE TO MEET YOU, I’M BLUE,” Blue said before listing the number. Brian might be lying. He learned a while ago some humans were liars. <strike>She was the worst liar.</strike>

Still there was nothing else he could do so he headed back to (Y/N), hoping you stayed just like he asked.

Ding!

You had finally calmed down enough to hear a beep from your phone. You pulled it out to see a message on the screen.

**Hey it’s Brian, your monster friend explained how you really weren’t a couple. Maybe we can get a coffee sometime.**

“OH GOOD, HE DIDN’T LIE.”

You stared dumbly from your phone up to the skeleton’s face which was a foot from yours.

“KEYS PLEASE,” Blue said, hand outstretched.

“I.. what…”

“YOU’RE NOT EXACTLY AT YOUR BEST. I’LL DRIVE US HOME AND GET MY BIKE LATER,” Blue said with a wink. You were sort of on auto polite and pulled out your keys before thinking about it. The phalanges nimbly picked them up and then Blue straightened up, staring at you expectantly.

You stumbled off the ground, looking from your car to his bike.

“But what if someone tries to steal it,” you asked, walking to the passenger side. Unlike Red who liked choppers, Blue had a cruiser. A current year Haley-Davidson which cost triple his old Honda.

“I’LL HAVE CLASSIC PAPS DRIVE ME BACK HERE AFTER WE GET HOME. BESIDES THIS WILL GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO TEXT BRIAN. CAN’T TEXT AND DRIVE AFTERALL,” Blue said with a wagging finger as he entered the driver’s side. You nod dumbly as you got in, pulling your seat belt on. You found yourself looking back at the text, not quite believing it was there.

“What did you say… exactly.”

“JUST THE TRUTH, WE’RE NOT BOYFRIENDS JUST Friends A.. AND HOW GREAT A GUY YOU ARE! I’M SURE YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A FANTASTIC DATE WITH HIM!” Blue nearly shouted with confidence as he drove the two of you out of the parking lot.

“Thanks…”

You probably shouldn’t be thanking him considering he nearly ruined the night. But you could see he was trying to fix it. And he was finally admitting you weren’t boyfriends. The therapy sessions were helping and if they were helping with this, maybe they’d help him with dealing with Stretch’s death.

“YOU’RE WELCOME (Y/N) AND UM I WANT TO ASK SOMETHING… THAT THING YOU CALLED YOURSELF. IS THAT A NICKNAME SOMEONE CALLED YOU? I MEAN DID SOMEONE AT THE MANSION ACTUALLY SAY YOU WERE-“

“-I don’t want to talk about it,” you muttered, putting your phone away. Sans and Papyrus were going to have so many questions when they saw your puffy face and snot covered shirt. Maybe you’d clean yourself up at your cabin before seeing them.

“Ok, We Won’t Talk About. Just Relax,” Blue said, going at a leisurely pace on the road.

Red stared out the window, seeing you step outside your cabin and heading towards Axe and Trap’s cabin. Oh wait, they got the new names Sans and Papyrus since you were best buds with them. He wondered what you’d be talking to them about. He wondered where you were the past couple of hours. He wondered if you were ever going to come to the mansion to visit them and maybe even him.

“Wasn’t nearly this hard with the bitch,” Red muttered to himself, leaning back on his bed with hands under head. Then again maybe he should have seen something was off about that. It was just so easy for all of them to instantly get into her good graces. For her to want to do something with every one of them and be ‘friends’ with all of them.

“What was her end game?” he muttered to himself. She wanted them all to stay and was willing to destroy the machine to make it happen. Thinking on it, she always got more from them versus the other way around. Gifts from some of them, attention from others, and just plain hot sex as well. She was getting it all, no wonder she didn’t want it to end.

“His different though,” Red muttered, pulling out his phone. The freaks weren't the only ones who got your picture. He text it to himself without you noticing. You weren’t instantly going to be best friends with the rest of them because of a few compliments and invites. The situation with Classic Paps said as much. You only became real friends with people, you didn’t fake it just to get something. And real friendship was going to be a lot harder to earn when it came to you.

“Maybe even more then friends,” Red said with a grin, grabbing his own crotch and giving it a tug. You were attracted to him and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t get a boner when protecting you from creepy Blue. The way he held you and gave the nut job a good kick had been a instant turn on. A knock suddenly came from the door.

“HEY RED, CAN I COME IN?”

Speaking of said creepy skeleton.

“Sure thing,” Red said, getting in a sitting position as he put his phone away. He was getting ahead of himself, had to work on getting you to want to hang out before he convinced you this edgy skeleton could show you some fun. The door opened, showing Blue who quickly walked in and closed it behind him.

“I’LL KEEP THIS QUICK- TIFFANY UNDERSTUDY.”

Red’s jaw instantly went slack, hanging from his mouth. A red sweat drop forming on his forehead.

“OH GOOD, AT LEAST MY SECOND GUESS WAS RIGHT.”

“Um second guess?”

“WHY YES, (Y/N) LET THE NICKNAME SLIP BUT WASN’T WILLING TO SAY WHO GAVE IT TO HIM. I WENT TO BLACK FIRST WITH THE WORDS, BUT HE JUST LOOKED CONFUSED,” Blue said as he approached slowly. He was forming each hand into a fist, giving it a good crack with the help of the other.

“YOU ON THE OTHER HAND APPEAR TO INSTANTLY RECOGNIZE THE WORDS SO I’M GUESSING YOU’RE THE ONE WHO GAVE HIM THE NICKNAME,” Blue said, cyan lights disappearing and leaving behind hollow sockets. The broad shoulders flexed, thick neck moving from one direction to the other. As a fellow fighter, Red instantly recognized how one warmed up for a brawl.

“I… I was drunk. I know it was insulting, but I know better now how stupid it was to say it,” Red said, a part of him wanted to head outside and apologize right then. Forget about friends or even friends with benefits, apparently he had to work on just be tolerated if you were still hurting from the stupid nickname.

“NOW YOU SEE HERE’S THE PROBLEM, THAT’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH. SO I’M GOING TO HAVE TO WWWEELLL BEAT YOU UP,” Blue said, lights back in place and cheerful smile plastered on his face. Phalanges grabbed his sweater and pulled him up. 

“Seriously?! You think you have the right to punish me for my mistakes after the crap you pulled,” Red snarled, slapping the hand away and matching his happy expression with a menacing scowl. Yeah he knew he fucked up, but seriously? This guy was fucking the bitch as (Y/N) confessed his feelings. If anyone should get their bony butt kicked for hurting (Y/N) it was this guy.

“OH I KNOW I’M A HYPOCRITE, BUT IT DOESN’T CHANGE THE FACT MY FIST IS GOING CRACK YOUR SKULL. FEEL FREE TO FIGHT BACK THOUGH. I KNOW I DESERVE SOME PUNCHES MYSELF,” Blue said, giving Red a push. The large skeleton hit a wall, plaster and wood instantly breaking under his weight. He was outright growling now, a sound so animalistic no human could imitate it. Before coming to this world he would have been terrified of fighting with his one hitpoint. Luckily his hitpoint number grew the longer he stayed in this timeline. Blue still had more, but Red could make up for it by fighting fiercer.

“AND DON’T THINK ABOUT SHORT-CUTTING. I ACTIVATED THE DEVICE IN THE BASEMENT WHICH STOPS THAT STUFF,” Blue said, bones the size of baseball bats forming in his hands. The fight didn’t even start yet and he was breathing hard. It wasn’t exhaustion, just pure excitement. In the back of his mind, Red noted Blue wanted this for more than just payback.

“Oh you bet I’m not running. We’ve all been giving you special treatment because no one wants to upset poor Blue after his bro got dusted. Well fuck it, it’s time you got what you deserved,” Red said, his own bones forming up. He’d hold off on the gaster blaster, could end up destroying the mansion. Bones would be enough though for this marshmallow.

“BRING IT ON.”


	9. Radio Rights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas!

You were smiling to yourself as you worked in the basement. It wasn’t a common occurrence, but then neither was texting a cute guy all morning about stuff either. It was all just small talk, you talked about the Grillby’s bar and other monster businesses you’ve been to. He talked about what places his job took him to.

You were just finishing up putting a machine part together when Red walked downstairs. Looks like this would be one of those days he decided to help.

“Hey Red how’s it- yikes!”

You ended up dropping the part, a thunk sound heard as you stared at Red. He always looked a little rough, a couple of small cracks here and there which made him look more jaded compared to Classic Sans. Now he had a big crack line moving along his forehead, a missing tooth, and you noticed he was limping as he came down the stairs.

“Aw what is it kid? Find me so hot you can’t take your eyes off me,” joked the skeleton with a wink.

“I um are you ok?” you asked, taking a couple of steps closer to get a better view of the damage. It didn’t look any prettier up close. Red’s cheeks turned slightly crimson as he suddenly found the floor fascinating.

“Jeez don’t make a big deal about it kid. I just got roughed up a little at Grillby’s, picked one too many fights,” Red said, crossing his arms.

“Ok, but shouldn’t you get some monster candy or something for it. I mean I don’t want you to have to help me down here injured,” you said, recalling the ‘one hit point’ status he used to have. Back when you first arrived Classic Sans explained how… fragile Judge Skeletons were. Luckily hit points increased for Classic Sans after he got to the surface and the same for the others. But you were still reminded of how it used to so dangerous for them to get even a little hurt.

“Yeah Classic Paps will normally make us some, but he uh hasn’t talked much to us since the whole spaghetti friendship dinner confession,” Red said as he moved past you to grab a part off the floor. You saw him winced when bending down, the motion obviously causing pain.

“Red just sit down and I’ll go ask Classic Pap’s for some monster candy,” you said, grabbing his arm and pulling him to the nearby chair. Even now he could easily resist you, but he went with your tugging, the grin back in place.

You suddenly found a large arm circling your waist and a chin resting on your shoulder. Your cheeks instantly turned red and it wasn’t just from the body warmth you felt rubbing against you.

“Sorry kid, just tired here. Guess I’m in worst shape then I first thought,” Red said, leaning some weight on you. Not all of it, that would have toppled you, just enough to make you feel his cheek nearly nuzzle yours as his ribs rubbed against you almost affectionately.

“It’s fine, just stay seated until I get back,” you said as you finally made it to the chair. The arm reluctantly let you go, Red falling into the chair with a grunt. You headed upstairs, a twinge of guilt following you. You didn’t regret setting the record straight with Classic Paps, but at the same time you weren’t looking to cause friction with a family which already suffered loss.

Classic Paps was in the kitchen washing dishes. You paused taking a step in the kitchen wondering exactly what reaction you would get. Would Classic Paps be angry with you for showing him the truth of what happened with his friendship spaghetti? His head turned your way, a smile still in place which was good.

“AH (Y/N), I’VE BEEN MEANING TO LOOK FOR YOU. STAY RIGHT THERE FOR A SECOND,” Classic Paps said before putting a dish away and then opening a drawer. You found yourself tensing, your imagination telling you to get ready to duck if he was looking to throw something at you. Instead he pulled out what appeared to be a card. Then with card in both gloved hands, he slowly approached you, smile still in place if twitching slightly.

“(Y/N) I… Made This For You, Please Read It,” Classic Paps said, holding out the card. You slowly took it and read the letters drawn carefully on it.

** _Thank You For Eating My Friendship Spaghetti, Please Be My Friend_ **

The paper was probably original white, but colored pencil was used to draw rainbow colors in the background. A giant bowl of spaghetti drawn in the center of the card below the words. It reminded you of the cards kids made in school only the art work was done so well. Classic Paps really did have a way of making drawings both vibrant and beautiful.

You momentarily forgot why you even came looking for him, simply studying the card for a minute. You were smiling again before you even realized it.

“Classic Paps this is… really great. Thank you,” you said, placing it carefully under your shirt.

“THANK YOU (Y/N), IT WAS MY WAY OF SAYING SORRY FOR THE WAY I BEHAVED. I HOPE TO EARN YOUR FRIENDSHIP,” Classic Paps said, smile widening.

“I’d be good with trying to be friends, but um we need to talk about something else. Red downstairs is hurt. Do we have any monster candy for him,” you said, trying to remind yourself you were there to help a banged up skeleton. Classic Pap’s smile disappeared, not frowning, just a neutral expression. Although any expression except outright smiling didn’t look normal on Classic Paps.

“I SUPPOSE I CAN FIND SOME AROUND HERE FOR HIM. ACTUALLY I’D ALSO LIKE TO DISCUSS SOMETHING WITH YOU OUTSIDE FIRST,” Classic Paps said as he turned and pulled open more kitchen drawers.

“You want to go outside?” you asked, seeing Classic Paps pull out two golden wrapped candies.

“AH YES, HERE WE GO. YES (Y/N), THERE’S SOMETHING WE NEED TO ADDRESS. PLEASE FOLLOW ME,” Classic Paps said, already walking past you. You found yourself following the tall skeleton through the front door to the driveway. He waited patiently until you came to stand next to him, right behind your Honda.

“COULD YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN WHY THIS IS ON YOUR CAR (Y/N)?” Classic Paps said with a gesture. You turned and found your jaw dropped as you read angry words spray canned on your bumper.

**MONSTER FUCKER**

“I.. I don’t know,” you said, staring at the words. You instantly thought of Scott but didn’t know how to explain. Wasn’t sure if you wanted to explain.

“WELL I CHECKED THE CAMERAS, NO ONE CAME TO THE MANSION AND DID IT. IT LOOKS LIKE IT HAPPENED WHEN YOU AND BLUE WERE OUT LAST NIGHT,” Classic Paps said, this time definitely frowning as he stared at the bumper.

“It must have been when we were at the bar,” you muttered. Thinking about it, both you and Blue could very easily have missed the words as you got into the car to drive back home. Did someone hear Blue call you boyfriend and decide to do it? You weren’t in the bar that long before running back out.

“(Y/N) I NEED YOU TO BE COMPLETELY HONEST WITH ME, IS IT POSSIBLE SOMEONE AT YOUR CAMPUS DID THIS?” Classic Paps asked, gesturing to the words. You almost opened your mouth to lie, but it stuck on your tongue. You didn’t want to get into explaining Scott, especially when it could have just been some angry bar patron. At the same time you didn’t want to lie to his face, especially after the whole conversation on being friends. Outright lying reminded you of Tiffany.

“It’s… possible, but unlikely. I was at a bar and I’d sooner bet it was just a drunk jerk,” you said, hoping the answer would end this awkward conversation. You were going to need to get sponge and soap to try to clean this off.

“HMM THEN I’M GOING TO HAVE TO INSIST YOU HAVE A BODYGUARD.”

“I’m sorry a whata?”

“A BODYGUARD, PERHAPS YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE TERM. YOU SEE IT’S A PERSON-“

“-yes Classic Paps I know what a bodyguard it, but I don’t need one. And I couldn’t afford one anyway,” you said with a roll of your eyes.

“OH GOOD HEAVENS NO, I’D NEVER HAVE YOU PAY FOR ONE. WE HAVE THREE ROYAL GUARDS HERE, MYSELF INCLUDED, WHO ARE EXPERTS ON BEING BODYGUARDS,” Classic Paps said with a flourish, gesturing to himself.

_I’m gonna take a guess that Black did not tell everyone else he was fired._

“Classic Paps as much as I appreciate the offer, I’m going to refuse,” you said, smiling slightly. You should be annoyed, but the offer to protect you was actually a little enduring.

“OH I’M NOT GIVING YOU A CHOICE. I’M AFRAID THIS WILL BE A REQUIREMENT TO STAY EMPLOYED.”

“Excuse me!?”

Ok, so now it was annoying.

“I’M NOT GOING TO HAVE YOU RISK BEING HARMED WORKING FOR US (Y/N). IF YOU DON’T ALLOW ME TO SUPPLY YOU PROTECTION THEN I’M GOING TO HAVE TO TERMINATE YOUR EMPLOYMENT. I’LL MAKE SURE YOU ARE PAID A LARGE LUMP SUM THOUGH FOR YOUR TROUBLES,” Classic Paps said while you felt one of your eyebrows twitch. Hired then fired, then hired again and fired again, it was like you were taking a revolving door for this job.

“Classic Paps, you realize you won’t get the machine fixed as fast without me,” you said, scratching your head in frustration.

“YES I KNOW IT’LL TAKE LONGER TO SEE MY BROTHER, BUT YOU ARE MY FRIEND (Y/N). AND FRIENDS PROTECT THEIR FRIENDS, EVEN WHEN THE SAID FRIEND May Be Angry At You For Doing So,” Classic Paps said, smile gaining a nervous twitch.

_Damn it! Why did he have to word it like that!?_

“Ugh! Alright! I guess you can come with me on campus if you are really worried. I mean it could be a little boring.”

“UNFORTUNATELY (Y/N) DUE TO MY BROTHER’S ABSENCE, I’VE HAVING TO HANDLE… RESPONSIBILITIES WHICH TAKE UP MUCH OF THE DAY. I WAS GOING TO HAVE ONE OF MY FELLOW ROYAL GUARDS HANDLE THIS DUTY.”

“Um what if they’re not interested?”

“NONESENSE! WHY I KNOW FOR SURE BLUE-“

“-Not Blue!” you interrupted, hands raised. Classic Paps looked at you puzzled, head cocking to the side.

“I’M SORRY (Y/N), AFTER SEEING YOU ARRIVE TOGETHER LAST NIGHT. I THOUGHT THINGS WERE GOING BETTER WITH HIM.”

“They are! He even agreed to stop calling me his boyfriend, but he also agreed to um give me space and not crowd me so much. I don’t think it’d be good for either of us if we hung out together all day,” you said, stomping down the twinge of guilt you felt. You did not want to risk a relapse in Blue’s behavior. You’d sooner let your whole car get spray painted. 

“WELL THEN THAT JUST LEAVES BLACK. HIS NOT THE TYPE TO WANT TO DO GUARD DUTIES OTHER THEN FOR THE ROYAL FAMILY SO I’M NOT SURE IF HE’D AGREE.”

“Classic Paps, how about we compromise. If Black agrees to bodyguard me then I’ll agree to it. If he doesn’t, then we agree I just be more careful,” you said with a raised finger, trying not to smile. Forget compromise, this was practically you getting your way. No way was Black going to agree to tail you all day at campus. Protect the guy who got him fired? You just didn’t see it happening.

“I SUPPOSE IT’S A REASONABLE COMPROMISE. VERY WELL (Y/N), IF HE AGREES THEN YOU’LL FIND HIM HERE AT YOUR CAR WHEN YOU HEAD TO CLASS LATER TODAY,” Classic Paps said as he held out his hand. The two wrapped candies glittered on his red glove.

“PLEASE TAKE THESE, ONE IS FOR RED. THE OTHER I WANT YOU TO KEEP IN CASE YOU DO GET INTO TROUBLE AND NEED IT,” Classic Paps said, waiting expectantly with monster candy out. You grabbed them with a nod, doubting you would need yours. Well doubting you’d need it for trouble at campus. Maybe if you ever get food poisoning again, this could be a quick cure for it.

“Sure thing, thanks Classic Paps,” you said with a genuine smile. It didn’t happen as much as you liked, but you felt like you were the winner of this argument.

“ARE YOU GOING TO JUST KEEP STANDING THERE AND GAWKING HUMAN? OR ARE WE GOING TO LEAVE?”

“Right sorry,” you said, walking a little slower to your car. There was Black, dressed almost casual. Wearing a collared shirt like always, but actually wearing jeans which was a first. Admittedly probably high-cost branded jeans you couldn’t afford, but still it was a leap down from three-hundred-dollar dress pants. You unlocked the doors, brain still trying to understand why the high and mighty Black would even agree to do this. 

“I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU STILL DRIVE THIS PILE OF JUNK,” Black grumbled as he got into the passenger side. It appeared safe to say you did NOT win the argument with Classic Paps after all.

“Black, do you understand why Classic Paps asked you come along?” you asked as you pulled out of the driveway. Maybe this was a misunderstanding, maybe he just didn’t know what was asked.

“CLASSIC PAPS WAS THROUGH IN EXPLAINING HOW SOMEONE ANONYMOUSLY THREATENED YOU AND YOU ARE IN NEED OF PROTECTION. I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO REVIEW THE GRAFFITI FOR CLUES THOUGH BEFORE YOU CLEANED IT.”

“Sorry,” you muttered, not really meaning it. Excuse you for not wanting everyone at college see a profanity sprayed on your car.

“RIGHT, LET’S BE CLEAR ABOUT PROCEDURES. I GO WHERE YOU GO, EVEN JOIN YOU AT THE RESTROOM WHERE YOU HUMANS DO THOSE THINGS WHICH DISGUST ME.”

“Sorry again, guess we can’t all be magic creatures who fart rainbows.”

“I DON’T AS YOU SAY ‘FART’... DO YOU REALLY DRESS LIKE THAT FOR CLASS?”

“Yes,” you growled, quickly reaching for the radio. Music appeared to be a much better option compared to conversation. Some alternate rock came on, one of your favorite bands.

“YOU DRESS LIKE A JUNKIE LIVING UNDER A BRIDGE. AND LET’S ACTUALLY LISTEN TO REAL MUSIC, NOT THIS NOISE,” Black said, changing the dial to some classical Beethoven.

“Ok that does it!”

You pulled the car to the side of the road, hands squeezing the wheel harder then normal. When Tiffany was around Black may have ordered you about, but he never actually hung out with you. For the first time you realized, yes, things could have been worst when living at the mansion.

You turned to him, seeing him cross his big arms while cocking his head to the side.

“I’M SORRY, IS THE HUMAN HAVING A HISSY FIT?”

“The human doesn’t want to hang out with someone who, as the ambassador pointed out, treats him like dirt,” you snapped back. The word ‘ambassador’ got you a flinch as Black looked away from you.

“Look I’m not expecting you to act nice because that’s… impossible. But please don’t insult literally all my tastes and preferences. Or else this isn’t happening.”

“CLASSIC PAPS WILL FIRE YOU IF YOU DON’T LET ME BODYGUARD,” Black said, you blinked for a second. The response was even more childish then normal. What was really weird was for all his complaints so far, he hadn’t actually complained about having to do the bodyguard work.

“Black why did you even agree to this? I mean I’m really not endanger. The security at campus is pretty good, just ask Red when he tried harassing me there.”

“THE DRUNK HARRASSED YOU AT CAMPUS. IS HE SOMEHOW INVOLVED IN THIS?” Black asked, glancing back at the mansion in the distance.

“What? No! I mean frankly you were a bigger problem then him,” you said, getting rewarded another flinch. The stout skeleton uncrossed his arms with a sigh.

“I WILL TRY TO RESTRAIN MY OPINIONS (Y/N). I TAKE MY RESPONSIBILITIES AS A ROYAL GUARD SERIOUSLY THOUGH.”

“Aren’t you technically not one anymore since you um got fired?” you asked, brain not catching up with mouth. You were rewarded a full-on glare with violet eyes glowing bright. 

“I’M STILL ONE IN SPIRIT,” Black said, each word coming out almost like a growl. Those sharp teeth were suddenly a lot more intimidating.

“Right, spirit, let’s get going,” you said, hastily putting the car back into drive gear and getting back on the road.

“AN EXCELLENT IDEA HUMAN.”

The rest of the drive was done with classic music filling the air. As a peace offering you decided not to change the channel. You felt relief as you parked the car, glad to be around other people who didn’t actually think you look like a junkie… at least you hoped to God they didn’t.

“BEFORE WE CONTINUE, WHAT DO YOU WANT YOUR DANGER WORD TO BE?” Black asked as he stepped out at a slower motion, eyes scanning the people nearby.

“Danger word?” you asked as you locked the car.

“A WORD WHICH LETS ME KNOW YOU ARE IN TROUBLE IN CASE YOU AREN’T ABLE TO STATE IT CLEARLY DUE TO CIRCUMSTANCES.”

“Um what do you mean by circumstances?”

“GUN BARREL AGAINST YOUR BACK. POISONED AND NEED IMMEDIATE MEDICAL ATTENTION. I COULD LIST A DOZEN SCENARIOS.”

“How’s a danger word going to let you know I’m poisoned?”

“WILL YOU JUST GIVE ME A STUPID WORD,” Black growled, hands on hips.

“Ok ok, um arithmetic!”

“VERY WELL, ARITHMETIC IS OUR DANGER WORD.”

“So is it a good danger word?”

“I BELIEVE YOU ASKED ME JUST TEN MINUTES AGO NOT TO EXPRESS OPINIONS OF HOW TERRIBLE YOU DO THINGS.”

“…thanks”

Surprisingly from there things weren’t too bad. He didn’t hover over you, actually keeping a distance of ten feet back as you walked to the campus building. You tensed when he went over to your professor, fearful of him telling the guy how you needed a bodyguard. Instead he said he heard good things about the class and was wondering if he could observe from the back.

The professor of course agreed, the college trying it’s best to come off as a monster friendly education institution. Others gave Black curious glances, some saying hello. He would give a nod, eyes never staying in one place.

The class went smoothly and in no time you found yourself entering the hallway to your next one.

“How’s it going monster fucker.”

You didn’t notice him right away, there were so many students in the hallway. Scott was only a foot away when you heard the whispered words, spoken so softly no one else could hear. You jerked back from him, feeling a large hand grab your shoulder and pull you even further. Scott was already walking away as Black almost dragged you to an empty classroom. 

You tried to protest and noticed side glances from other students, but you were already inside with door closed before the thoughts could form into words.

“So His The One,” Black said, looking you over.

“What are you talking about?” you asked, trying your best to keep your expression neutral. 

“STOP TRYING TO HIDE IT, I HEARD WHAT HE SAID TO YOU.”

“You could hear him? I mean he just whispered it,” you said, having trouble looking at him. You didn’t want things to go this far. You didn’t want Classic Paps to make you have a bodyguard. And you definitely didn’t want said bodyguard to find out about Scott. You felt two hands this time on your shoulders, finding yourself looking up at Black’s face.

He was frowning again, but it was different. It wasn’t the frown which said he was ticked off at you. He actually looked concerned, worried for you. Such a foreign expression you never saw before.

“(Y/N) Please Tell Me What’s Going On. I’m Here To Help,” Black said, words sounding sincere.

_I TAKE MY RESPONSIBILITIES AS A ROYAL GUARD SERIOUSLY THOUGH._

There were a lot of things which came to mind when you thought of Black. Narcistic Jerk, High-class Snob, and Ego Maniac were just a few words you associated with him. Slacker wasn’t one of them though. When Black made a commitment to something, he put all his effort into it.

“I… it was around the time when Classic Sans was looking for applicants for the Assistant position.”


	10. You're History

All in all it was a short story. You and Scott applied for Classic San’s position, Scott harassed you ever since you got the said position.

“WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL US ABOUT THIS WHEN THE HARASSMENT STARTED MONTHS AGO?” Black asked, large arms crossed.

“Well he was caught doing it and had to leave campus, besides… I wasn’t exactly close with any of you guys,” you said, leaving unspoken a lot of details to those words. Black’s cheeks turned slightly violet as he looked away. His shoulders pulled back, posture becoming more rigid as he matched your gaze with his own.

“YES WELL (Y/N) THINGS ARE DIFFERENT NOW. IT’S OBVIOUS THIS HUMAN IS RATHER COWARDLY, LEAVING NOTES AND SPRAY PAINTING YOUR CAR. THE CHANCES OF HIM DIRECTLY ATTACKING YOU APPEAR LOW.”

“So does that mean I’m safe and you can head home now?”

“NO, IT JUST MEANS I DON’T HAVE TO KEEP MY EYE ON YOU AS LONG AS YOU STAY IN A PUBLIC SETTING. GIVEN HOW THIS ‘SCOTT’ SAW YOU WITH A MONSTER, HE MAY ALREADY BE PLANNING ANOTHER WORK OF ART ON YOUR CAR.”

“Wonderful,” you muttered, recalling how security was stronger at the buildings versus the actual parking lots. Given the right point of time in the day, you could do anything in the parking lot without another soul witnessing.

“WHICH IS WHY I’M GOING TO DO SURVEILLANCE ON YOUR CAR WHILE YOU GO TO YOUR NEXT CLASS. IF WE’RE LUCKY, I’LL CATCH HIM ON CAMERA DOING THE DAMAGE WHICH WE CAN REPORT TO THE COLLEGE,” Black said, pulling out his iphone. His plus size iphone which he bought only three months ago because he literally get’s every version which comes out. You meanwhile were still making do with a three-year-old android.

“Are you sure you’ll be ok, I mean what if he notices you,” you said, not really able to see how a giant stout skeleton could hide in the background. 

“I’M A MONSTER ABLE TO SUMMON A DOZEN WEAPONS WHO HAS THE STRENGTH OF FIVE HUMAN MEN. I THINK I’M GOOD,” Black said with a roll of his eyes as he finally opened the class door.

“BY THE WAY, IF I’M NOT MISTAKEN, YOU’RE ALREADY FIVE MINUTES LATE FOR YOUR NEXT CLASS.”

“Crap!” you hissed, running out to the now empty hallway.

With lungs out of breath, you rushed into the classroom where the teacher was already beginning his lecture. Luckily he didn’t verbally call you out on it, just give you the evil eye as he continued speaking. You mouthed an apology as you took your seat, pulling your book out. The subject was history, but all you could think of was what would happen in the future.

Was Scott going to target your car right here on campus? Was Black really going to be able to catch him in the act?

“I’m sure he’ll be fine,” you muttered to yourself as your hand wrote down notes from a lecture you really weren’t listening to. Black was by monster standards pretty tough, before his time on the surface he was a captain-

_THE SURFACE WATCHLIST!_

Your hand froze, pen stopped just short of finishing a word. Your brain suddenly feeling like it was going into overdrive. Ambassador Frisk put Black on the Surface Watchlist. Assuming they were serious about the punishment, Black’s face would be placed on both the monster’s government website and the county website as well.

He’d be noted as a monster who showed uncalled for aggression and encourage any human who spotted him in anyway acting violent to video tape/picture the act and send it to either the sheriff’s office or the royal family. 

At which point he’d be forced to go underground to the monster’s kingdom, not allowed to step on the surface for five years. It was in a lot of ways like how someone was placed on parole right after prison. Technically free, but placed under rules because they weren’t trusted.

“Would Scott have checked the website? Would he know if Black was on the list,” you muttered to yourself. If the answer was yes, then the skeleton could be in serious trouble.

“(Y/N), I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mutter in my class,” the professor said, a bald man whose eyes seem to get scarier. Apparently he was reaching his limit with you.

“I’m sorry sir! I um think I have a stomach flu. I need to head to the rest room,” you said, clutching your stomach. You were already leaving the classroom as the professor stuttered a protest. You also heard a few snickers.

_I can’t believe I’m risking expulsion for the jerk._

The said jerk though promised to protect you and was putting himself at risk for you. You didn’t ask for it, but that didn’t mean you wanted him hurt because of it. You headed straight to the parking lot, wishing you spotted a security guard on the way. Then again what would you say? Oh hello my skeleton bodyguard who is on the Surface Watchlist may need help.

“Oh shit…”

You wish your eyes were playing tricks on you because what you saw seemed impossible. Big, imposing Black who could make men cringe with a glare was curled up in a ball next to your car. Scott held a phone aimed down at the monster while two other guys repeatedly kicked the skeleton. You didn’t recognize them, but they were big. As in football linebacker big.

Their shoes tore and dirtied the violet shirt, you could see a couple of cracks already on Black’s skull as you ran forward. You paused a second, realizing calling security would probably be a better option. Then you saw one of the big guys grab a tire iron from the ground.

“Time for this fucking monster to get a hole in his skull. Get ready for some pain you-UGH!”

You stopped thinking about security or about how stupid you were being. All you could think of was one simple thing- you didn’t want to see Black die. You threw yourself full body at the guy from behind, finding yourself grabbing him as he toppled down. The tire iron dropped with a clang, relief was short lived as the thug easily pushed you aside.

“Who’s this fucker?”

“That’s the monster lover I was telling you guys about! Quick get-HEY!”

You jumped up and made a clumsy swiping motion. Scott flinched probably expecting a punch, but he wasn’t your target. Your sweaty hand slapped against the phone, making him lose his grip. The glass shattered as it flew onto the pavement.

“You little shit!”

The other thug jumped over Black, now it was your turn to be tackled. You hissed in pain, head hitting the pavement. He didn’t stop there though, you yelped as you got punched in the stomach.

“Hah liked that fucker! I’m going to-AGGGHHH!”

As you tried your best now to throw your lunch up, you peeked an eye open. The big guy was screaming as he stared down at his hand impaled with a jagged bone. The crude weapon was held by Black, his other hand clutching the guy’s neck. Other thug finally got up, staring at the scene with horror. Black simply gave him a side glance, smirking as he twisted the bone weapon.

Blood dripped and squirted from the hand, tears running down the man’s face. Now his fellow partner in crime wasn’t watching anymore but turned and ran deeper into the parking lot.

“You.. you can’t do that, you’re on the Surface Watchlist,” Scott said, shaking slightly.

“THERE’S ACTUALLY AN EXCEPTION TO THAT RULE, WE’RE ALLOWED TO ATTACK IF WE SEE AN INNOCENT HUMAN ENDANGER. IT’S IN THE FINE PRINT OF THE LAW… IRRELEVANT THOUGH SINCE YOU HAVE NO PHONE TO RECORD ME,” Black said, finally pulling out the bone dagger and throwing the man away from you. He rolled along the pavement, clutching his hand the whole time and whimpering. 

The skeleton got up, looking down at Scott from his superior height as he casually cleaned the blood on his bone weapon with a purple napkin he pulled out of his pocket.

“I’ll tell them you attacked us unprovoked! You’re just a dirty monster! They’ll believe me when-“

“-no they won’t Scott. It’s on record that you harassed me. When I tell them the truth everyone is going to know what you tried,” you said, wincing as you spoke. You had a splitting headache from hitting the pavement. Scott’s head switched from you and Black, the sound of a car’s motor starting could be heard. Without another word the skinny man turned and ran.

You saw a car moving at high speed to get out of the parking lot. It nearly ran over Scott as he got in the way, hands waving. It stopped only half a minute for him to jump in before the tires squealed, and it headed out.

“His getting away,” you groaned, trying to get up. A large hand grabbed your shoulder, gently but firmly keeping you on the ground.

“I ALREADY HAVE THE LICENSE PLATE NUMBER, DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT. STAY STILL (Y/N), YOU MAY HAVE A CONCUSION.,” Black said, hand going from your shoulder to your head. You felt phalanges move aside hair, tapping a bump forming on your head. Meanwhile you couldn’t take your eyes off the spiderweb cracks on his skull. You had no doubt the tire iron really would have made a hole, it might have even dusted him.

An idea formed past the headache and you found yourself searching your pockets. With a sigh you felt the wrapped candy and pulled it out.

“Black I have some monster candy, I think you should take it considering how many times they hit you,” you said, holding it out.

“LET ME SEE,” Black said, snatching it up quickly. Shesh, a thank you would be nice.

“YES, THIS SHOULD DO FINE.”

You didn’t have time to respond before feeling a phalange push between your lips and force your mouth open. The candy already unwrapped and pushed against your tongue. The second you tasted it, you could feel your headache subsiding. The stomach pain you felt only a moment ago was disappearing as well.

“You could have asked,” you muttered with candy under you tongue, jerking your head back.

“I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR MY WARD TO GO CONCERNING HIMSELF WITH MY HEALTH. I’VE SURVIVED MUCH WORST THEN THIS,” Black said, brushing his shirt of dust. A futile effort considering some of the shoe marks had stained the fabric with ugly marks.

“Your um ward?” you asked, feeling a little fear. The word ‘ward’ sounded a bit… medieval. Oh God, was he pulling you into one of his renaissance fantasies?

“IT’S AN APT TERM FOR SOMEONE I’LL BE WATCHING OVER CLOSELY. UNTIL I KNOW YOU’RE SAFE, I’M NOT LEAVING YOU OUT OF MY SIGHT,” Black said with a huff, his words accompanied by a finger stroking your cheek. 

The intimate gesture was so surprising all you could do was sit there and begin to blush. You weren’t even sure if it really happened because the next second Black was standing up and waving his hand to someone behind you. You heard the stomping of boots and turned to see three security guards.

“What’s going on here,” said the lead guard looking from you, Black, and finally to the thug clutching a bloody hand.

“That fucking monster tried to kill me!” screamed the man as he pointed at Black with his good hand.

“IF ONLY I WERE ALLOWED TO KILL YOU,” Black growled, arms crossed. You quickly spoke up, explaining what happened. Telling yourself Black wouldn’t go and do something like stroke your cheek. It must have been your imagination. Seriously, this was Black we were talking about.

“I Shouldn’t Have Done It,” Black whispered to himself. You didn’t hear, you were a safe distance away explaining what happened to the security guards and police officers. So far it looked like things were going well. Two police officers showed up ten minutes later and they were all listening carefully to what (Y/N) said. The filth being sent to a hospital with police escort. None of the police mentioned arresting Black for violating the Surface Watchlist. It helped how the hoodlum had no business being at the college. Furthermore, Scott wasn’t there to defend himself. Running away only made things worse for the rat.

_I SHOULDN’T HAVE TOUCHED YOU LIKE THAT… WHY DID I TOUCH YOU?!_

It was unnecessary, had nothing to do with checking on your health and well-being. It had just been so… instinctive. A gesture which felt right and followed through on without thought. So different with her, where he analyzed every action he took to make sure she approved. Even during sex he never felt so unguarded as to-

“Not Thinking Of That,” Black muttered, both verbally and mentally ordering himself to think of other things. So his mind turned to the license plate number. To the other two threats who were not arrested yet. When you were safe back home, he’d have to go hunting. And he wasn’t going to lie to himself… a part of him looked forward to it.

Hunting alone though was too dangerous even with those two idiots. It made him think of how Mutt would normally already be there ready to join him for the pursuit. He’d have to look for help with his extended family. Blue was out of the question, in fact they couldn’t dare speak a word of what happened to him. His marshmallow twin was too unstable at the moment.

Which left him with Classic Paps and Red. Red would be the best choice, but how he hated the skeleton’s laziness. The former human eaters, Sans and Papyrus, were good at hunting. Maybe even better than him considered how hunting is what kept them alive. Involving them though increased the chances of you finding out. And he didn’t need his ward complaining about him taking the law into his own hands.

“Hey Black?” you asked, waving a hand in front of his face.

Black blinked, realizing with slight embarrassment he had let himself get lost in thought.

“I UM YES WARD, WHAT IS IT?”

“Well the police want a recorded testimony from you of what happened before we leave. Also I was going to call Ambassador Frisk and ask them to take you off the Surface Watchlist,” you said, fidgeting in front of the big skeleton.

“I Would Appreciate Such a Thing,” Black said, nearly smiling at the kind gesture. Given his unchivalrous behavior in the past, Black was surprise you trusted him enough to have him removed from the list. He had threatened you, stalked you, and nearly physically assaulted you. It appeared he earned some trust now though.

Now hopefully with his face not plastered on websites, his hunt will go smoother.

“STAY HERE WITHIN SIGHT WHILE I SPEAK TO THE POLICE. WE’LL LEAVE STRAIGHT FOR THE MANSION AFTERWARDS,” Black said, getting a nod in return. You were taking orders well, now if only you didn’t run headlong into danger so recklessly. He couldn’t really complain though since it saved his life. His only way to pay such a debt was to make sure you were truly safe.

Black walked to the police officers and answered all their questions.

No, he never saw the humans until today.

Yes, the stabbing of the hand was necessary due to the violent assaults the man was doing. Just look at the cracks on his skull for verification.

No, he had no clue as to where they were going.

It wasn’t like Black was lying. The police never out right asked for a license plate number. If they were too stupid to ask, then all the more proof he should handle those two himself.

“NOW (Y/N) I’M NOT THE TYPE TO SAY I TOLD YOU SO, BUT…”

“Yes Classic Paps, you were right. I needed a bodyguard,” you said with a roll of your eyes. As soon as you reached the mansion, Black explained what happened. It was weird how he did it though, not with the usual arrogance and snobbish attitude. It was more like a military officer reporting to his superior, noting relevant details only with no personal opinion.

Classic Paps took the whole debriefing with a nod, then calmly walked up to you with a smile and gave you a bone crushing hug. For a second you were afraid you would need another monster candy before he finally let you go to breath.

“Classic Paps, Black, I wanted to ask a favor. Could we um not tell the others this happened,” you said, already imagining how Blue would freak if he found out. Forget about getting personal space, he’d handcuff you to him if he found out about this. Sans and Papyrus would barely be better, maybe even insist on being two additional bodyguards.

“I CAN UNDERSTAND WITH BLUE HOW IT WOULD BE BEST TO NOT UPSET HIM,” Classic Paps said, rubbing his chin.

“I MAY WANT TO SHARE SOME DETAILS OF THIS WITH RED. HAVING A MONSTER WHO CAN SHORTCUT, HELP KEEP AN EYE ON MY WARD, WOULD BE HELPFUL,” Black said, giving your shoulder a pat. Classic Pap’s jaw nearly dropped as he stared at the said shoulder which got a pat. You stood frozen, a bit surprised at the gesture as well.

“WELL YES, OF COURSE BLACK. LET ME GET YOU IN THE KITCHEN FOR SOME MONSTER CANDY,” Classic Paps said, nodding towards the kitchen. 

“I WON’T REFUSE, DON’T LEAVE THE GROUNDS ALONE WARD. EITHER I OR RED WILL STAY BY YOUR SIDE WHEN YOU TRAVEL OUT,” Black said, the words making you forget about gestures and think more about lack of freedom.

“How long is this escort thing going to be happening?” you asked, trying to come up with a way to argue about it. You could call Ambassador Frisk, but considering you were actually assaulted they might very well agree with the skeletons on you not being alone.

“I’M SURE THEY WILL BE CAUGHT IN NO TIME. I’D GIVE IT A COUPLE DAYS AT MOST BEFORE YOU NO LONGER HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THEM,” Black said as he and the other skeleton headed to the kitchen.

“Right,” you said with a sigh. Scott didn’t strike you as the brightest guy in the world so maybe Black was right. And didn’t he say he got the license plate? No doubt he shared it with the police and they were already working on catching the two.


	11. Contest of Strength

“What’s the pattern?” you muttered to yourself as you looked over the papers. You’ve been staring at the reports giving details on the physicals Alphys gave to each of the skeletons. You have been racking your brain trying to figure out why the machine targeted three out of the seven skeletons and so far you weren't having much luck.

They were from different timelines, a mix of Judge and non-Judge types, and also a mix of Sans and Papyrus types. Recalling their personalities, none of them were similar in character. There just didn’t seem to be a common characteristic, was it because Stretch was killed? Would a pattern be more evident if he was alive?

Progress on the machine repair was going great, but it wasn’t going to get the others back if you couldn’t figure out the common thread between the three skeletons grabbed.

You heard a knock on your door. With a yawn you went to the front door and pulled it open. There stood Red and Black, who couldn’t contrast their fashion wear any more if they tried. Red wearing his usual red sweater, furry jacket, and shorts while Black was wearing another violet shirt, lighter color, with his dress pants. 

“Jeez kid, hope you don’t plan to order a drink in that.”

“Um what?” you asked dumbly, looking down at your white t-shirt and sweat pants.

“WHAT RED IS TRYING TO SAY IS WE WERE PLANNING TO HEAD TO GRILLBY’S AND THOUGHT WE SHOULD INVITE YOU. YOU’VE HAD A STRESSFUL DAY AND IT’S MY UNDERSTANDING RECREATIONAL SOCIAL EVENTS SUCH AS THIS CAN HELP EASE STRESS,” Black said, looking away from you. This was… weird and also a first. Not just the being asked to a bar, but also hearing how Black wanted to go to it. Red might as well live at Grillby’s, but as far as you know Black never took a step in the place.

“What James Bond here is trying to say is getting plastered can be fun. So whatcha say kid?” Red asked with a wink. You almost said no, but then you thought of the magical drink you had there before. And yes it tasted so good, you really did want to try another. You even promised Brian you two could try one.

_Crap! I forgot about Brian._

With the near death moment, you forgot how Black’s escort insistence could ruin your dating life. On the other hand if you went with them now and Black was in a good mood by the end of the night…

“Sure thing, let me just get dressed into something else,” you said with a smile, already turning and heading towards your bedroom.

A little over an hour later you found yourself at Grillby’s, the drive there made with Black’s BMW (which was purple of course). A corner table was found with Red quickly asking for a fireball shot and Black asking for a martinee. Maybe the James Bond reference really was accurate.

You instantly got the same magical drink as before, club soda with glowing lights inside it. Giving Grillby a thank you, you enjoyed the citrus, lemon, and lime flavors which danced on your mouth.

“You sure you don’t want something with a little bit more kick kid? Can have Grillby mix something for you which will really take you off your feet,” Red said with a wink.

“STOP TRYING TO KILL MY WARD’S BRAIN CELLS,” Black said before taking a sip of his drink. Red chugged his shot glasses one after another while Black took measured sips, appearing intent on enjoying every moment of it.

“What’s all this ward business?” Red asked, giving Black a calculated look.

“I was kind of wondering that myself,” you said, glad the other skeleton brought it up. Black, for the first time that night, appeared uncomfortable and started shifting in his seat.

“IT’S.. IT’S A SIMPLE TITLE FOR WHAT A ROYAL GUARD GIVES TO A PERSON THEY ARE BODYGUARDING. USED FOR WHEN ONE DEVOTE THEIR LIVES TO PROTECT ANOTHER.”

“You mean um devote until Scott and the other thug are arrested,” you added hastily. You weren’t crazy about the explanation, it almost sounded like marriage.

“Of Course,” Black said, then finished his drink with one gulp and waved Grillby for another. You found yourself exchanging looks with Red.

“RED THERE’S SOMETHING WHICH CONFUSED ME AND PERHAPS YOU KNOW THE DETAILS. BLUE SAID A VERY STRANGE PHRASE TO ME LAST NIGHT. HE SAID TI- HMPHH!”

You found yourself pushed back as Red dived over the table as if he was on fire. One big hand grabbed Black’s shirt, the other clamped on his mouth.

“Don’t Say It!” Red growled, red sweat drop dripping on his skull. The whole bar went quite at seeing Red’s crazy assault. Then the silence shattered with Black grabbing the offending arm holding his shirt, twisting and sending Red crashing to the ground. The big skeleton grunted as he thumped on the floor once before laying eagle spread before both of you.

“DO NOT THINK JUST BECAUSE WE SHARE DRINKS YOU MAY PLACE YOUR FILTHY HANDS ON ME DRUNK!”

“What’s going on here?” Grillby asked, flames on his head dancing higher when approaching the trio.

“Nothing wrong here, I just um overreacted. Seriously Black, just don’t say those words again. I’ll explain about it later,” Red said with a huff as he pulled himself up. You weren’t used to seeing Red so fearful. You notice Black give you a side glance and all you could do was shrug your shoulders.

“VERY WELL, IT BETTER BE A GOOD ONE THOUGH,” Black grumbled as he sat down again. Red passed by you, a finger tickling your backside as he made his way to his chair. You nearly spilled your drink, hearing a heavy chuckle from the skeleton. Black was too busy grabbing his new drink from Grillby to notice.

The whole reason you went along with this was to get Black in a good mood so he’d agree to leave you alone when you tried dating Brian. So far the plan was going down in flames though. Although maybe you were going about this from the wrong angle.

“Say Black, that was a crazy move you did to get Red on the floor. Do Monsters have their own training in hand to hand combat?” you asked, thinking of how easily he made it look.

“OF COURSE, ALL ROYAL GUARDS ARE NOT JUST TRAINED TO USE MAGIC TO FIGHT. WE ARE ALSO TRAINED TO MAKE OUR BODIES WEAPONS AS WELL,” Black said, thumping his chest with a fist. Red rolled his eyes before downing another shot glass.

“Do you think you could train me to fight? I don’t mean like to be able to flip giant skeletons or anything, but maybe good enough so I can defend if I’m attack like… before?” you asked, recalling the feeling of being overwhelmed when the giant thug hit you. If you could get some formal training, then it was a win-win. You would know better what to do in a fight. And could use it as an arguing point to let you hang out with Brian alone.

“I SUPPOSE IT WOULD MAKE SENSE,” Black said, twirling a toothpick in his martini. For some reason his cheeks were turning violet. The red-eyed skeleton snorted and crossed his arms.

“You almost had a good idea, but you should let me train you. When you get into a serious fight, you want to learn to fight dirty. That’s my specialty,” Red said with a smirk. Now the violet glow was gone from the cheeks, the eyes though just got three times brighter.

“DON’T MAKE ME HAVE TO DEMONSTRATE AGAIN DRUNK. WE’VE ALREADY SEEN WHOSE THE SUPERIOR ONE HERE.”

“Seriously? I let you pull that move since I know you throw a tantrum whenever someone lays a finger on your shirt.”

“You guys aren’t going to um fight right?” you asked, giving a nervous glance to Grillby at the bar.

“Of course not, we can be reasonable here, at least I can be. How about you make a suggestion on how we prove who’s toughest,” Red said, giving you a grin.

“Me!?” you nearly squeaked, looking from Red to Black. 

“I AGREE, CHOOSE ANY SORT OF TEST FOR US TO SHOW WHOSE THE STRONGEST. I WILL SHOW THIS SLOB HOW OUTCLASSED HE IS,” Black said, shirt fabric stretching as he flexed his shoulders.

“Ok, what about an arm-wrestling contest?” you asked, it was the first thing which came to mind as you looked from one skeleton to the other. The two skeletons exchanged glances.

“Not a bad suggestion kid, what made you come up with it?”

“I don’t know, maybe because of how big your bodies are? I mean you have arms the size of my thighs,” you said, then quickly shut your mouth again as you blushed. Black had his glowing cheeks back while Red scooted over to you and placed an arm on your shoulder. You could feel the warmth of it as the large limb pulled you against Red. A growling sound, almost animalistic, emitted from Black as he glared at Red.

“So you’ve noticed how big our arms are huh?” Red asked, so close you could smell the scent of cinnamon from his breath. A question nagged at you, something you almost ended up asking Blue back when you use to be together. Maybe it would distract Red from being so flirty.

“Um Red if you don’t mind me asking, why does your arm not feel like… well bone? I mean I’d swear I feel it flexing, but there’s no muscle,” you said and as if to prove your point, you feel it enlarge against you.

“Touch It,” Black said, laying his own arm on the table in front of you. He had rather quickly unbutton the sleeve and had it rolled up. Now before you was his bare arm, white bones so large, no normal creature would have them. You found yourself moving a hand out, the arm twitch slightly under the touch of your fingertips, but otherwise Black didn’t move.

Other then grabbing a drumstick from a chicken bowl, the only other time you recalled touching bone was when you were in a class to study the remains of animal fossils. This didn’t feel anything like that, it didn’t feel like bone at all. It was a firm, but there was also a softness, as if you were simply touching flesh turned white. You recall having the same sensation when touching Blue.

“APPEARANCES CAN BE DECEIVING. I MAY LOOK LIKE A SKELETON MADE OF MARROW AND HARD BONE, BUT AS YOU CAN TELL FROM TOUCH, WHAT I’M MADE OUT OF IS TRULY SOMETHING DIFFERENT,” Black said, eyes not leaving your face as he stayed still during your probing. 

“And what are you made of?” you asked, moving your hand back. Black lifted up the arm, appearing almost reluctant to take it off the table.

“Magic changed to flesh kid,” Red said, nearly causing you to jump. For a second there you forgot he had you held against him. Then you noticed he was taking his spare hand to grab the neck of his sweater, easily pulling it down to show his bare chest.

“Go on and touch it for a second. You remember when I held you before? How my chest rose and fell like I’m breathing?” Red asked, the memory instantly jumping to your mind. He was referring to the time he stopped Blue from kissing you.

“Y..yeah, I remember,” you said, hand already moving and touching the white flesh. Not white bone, Black was right, this was truly flesh created in a way you didn’t understand.

_This might be a bad idea…_

You were touching him, feeling the chest rise and fall, quicker now with your hand against it. You didn’t touch Sans or Papyrus like this. It was just cuddling and arm brushing with those two. This felt different and you felt your cheeks blush harder as Red was out right staring at you. 

He looked, the only word you could think of, was hungry. Yes he looked hungry for something. This was starting to feel like those times you made out with Blue.

“Red We Have A Contest To Finish,” Black said, standing up and stretching. The flesh under his expensive shirt expanded and flexed, his masculine form becoming more defined.

“Right, sorry, got distracted,” Red said as you quickly pulled back your hand. He finally let go and you had to admit, your body instantly missed having something warm and solid holding it. You seriously needed Red to ease up with the touching and flirting. The red-eyed skeleton was doing the same as Black, stretching his body, pops being heard as it twisted. Arms appears to enlarge and look muscular, proving the point of them being flesh not bone.

The black and yellow jacket Red wore came off, you found it falling on your head.

“Do me a favor and hold that for me kid,” Red said as he rolled his sleeve down. His white forearm looked just as big as Black’s.

“Ok,” you said, finding yourself laying it on your lap. It smelled of whiskey and was surprising soft to the touch.

“MY WARD ISN’T A CLOTHES RACK. NOW GET YOUR ARM DOWN HERE,” Black said, placing his elbow on the table. His hand flexed and curled, looking ready to grab something.

“Gladly, get ready to get your ass kicked,” Red said with a grin, elbow coming down. The phalanges slapped against each other with a loud clap. The sharp sound getting the attention of everyone.

“WARD, PLACE YOUR HAND ON TOP. YOU LIFTING IT UP WILL SIGNAL US TO BEGIN,” Black said, matching Red’s grin with his own. You weren’t surprised to see him looking happy, his competitive nature coming to the front.

“Sure thing,” you said, suddenly not sure if this was a good idea. Why did you just say the first thing which came into your head? Still though what else could you have suggested? Wasn’t like playing a game of Smash Brothers on the game console would have proven who’s stronger.

Trying to shake off your worries, you place your hand on theirs, feeling the tension shooting through the closed fists. You swallowed once before speaking, the tension in the air rising as everyone at the bar watched silently.

“Begin!”

The huge forearms instantly leaned forward when your hand lifted, popping sounds heard as the phalanges appear to try to crush one another. For thirty seconds there was simply the two pushing their bodies, one arm gaining a inch then losing a inch on occasion. Sweat drops began to form on their skulls, red and violet liquid dripping onto the table. Then you flinched when both did something unexpected. 

A loud thumping sound rang in your ears as you saw both skulls hit each other, a couple of hairline cracks instantly forming on both their foreheads.

“YOU THOUGHT I WOULDN’T SEE THAT MOVE COMING DRUNK? YOU TALK BIG ABOUT HOW YOU FIGHT DIRTY, BUT YOU FORGET ONE IMPORTANT THING,” Black said, not appearing bothered by the fact that he just headbutted a fellow skeleton.

“And what’s that you pansy,” Red growled, looking ready to raise his head to slam it again.

“I COME FROM A WORLD JUST LIKE YOURS, US ROYAL GUARDS INVENTED THE CONCEPT OF FIGHTING DIRTY. WHAT’S THAT PHRASE YOU DON’T WANT SAID? OH YES- TIFFANY UNDERSTUDY.”

“You fucker! I SAID DON’T SAY IT!”

You were already getting up as Red lost his concentration, arm being slammed into the table. You didn’t see anything else, except monsters stepping away to give you a path out, a few of them giving you a sympathetic glance.

“HAH! THAT’S WHAT YOU GET FOR TRYING TO BEAT BLACK, CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARDS! WARD DID YOU SEE- UM WARD?”

You were already walking out as the skeleton noticed you weren’t in your seat. The walking turned to jogging as you found yourself just wanting to get away. You were pretty sure Black didn’t know what the words were about, but like some sort of curse they always seem to follow you. You were just starting to forget it, forget the words and forget what they meant.

It was like the universe was determine to make sure you remember your place in it.

You had been walking for nearly an hour now, a car occasionally passing you. Every time you saw headlights you instantly tensed because it could be Black’s BMW. And you didn’t want to see Black or Red, you weren’t even sure which of them you were angry at for what happened. Maybe it was more like you were just angry with the situation.

It was so late, most businesses were closed, the streetlights lighting up your sidewalk. One very stupid thing you were doing was you weren’t even walking towards the mansion. You actually headed the opposite way. You could use your cell phone to get a uber ride maybe. Or maybe you should call Classic Paps for a lift. Only it would lead to talking about why you were out on your own.

The scent of whiskey hit your nostrils again and you stared dumbly at the jacket still in your arms. You never dropped it, your brain on autopilot as you left the bar and walked down the street. Then you noticed the public trash can next to the street, fixed against a light post. You quickly walked over, raising the jacket over your head to throw it in.

The trash can wasn’t emptied yet, it was filled with half-eaten food, drink cups, and God knows what else. Would definitely ruin the thing. Your arms shook a little as you stayed pose, then with a sigh you carefully took a step back and lowered your arms. 

“Thanks kid but wouldn’t blame you if you did it.”

“AAGGHH!”

You had no shame in saying you screamed when you heard the voice only ten feet behind you. You turned to see Red, who had his eyes on the jacket still held in your arms. There was an awkward silent minute, before you finally lifted the jacket towards Red.

“Um here,” you whispered, staring at the street because you really just didn’t want to look at him right now. The whole point of this walk was not having to look at any skeleton. You felt it taken form your hands, then jump startled as the large jacket was placed on your shoulders. Your whole body was practically covered by the thing, the jacket hanging only a foot from the ground.

“It’s cold out kid,” Red muttered as he tied the hood strings together to keep it secure on you. As if to prove his point, a cold breeze came by, your body barely feeling it. He still had his eyes lowered, gaze more on the jacket then on your face. You were practically doing the same, staring at the phalanges which finally finished tying the knot.

“You know I never did really apologize for saying it.”

The words finally caused you to look up, staring into Red’s glowing eyes which were hard to read.

“I thought about doing it kid, I really did. It’s just it wasn’t even the first, second, or fucking third offense I did when it came to treating you… well like shit. Apologies aren’t worth much after that record.”

“Yeah saying sorry, feels a little too late now,” you said, not really feeling resentment, just sad. Because you wish this all started with being friends with them, with Red seeing you as a real friend and not just someone to hang out with for when Tiffany had her attention on others.

It wasn’t like you wanted to hold a grudge, it was simply that you couldn’t pretend the past insults and demeaning treatment never happened.

“Still kid, for what it’s worth- I’m sorry I said it. And I’d like to do something to make it up to you,” Red said, scratching the back of his head.

“Don’t worry about it,” you said with a sigh, already taking a step past him to walk again, only this time walk towards the mansion. Red moved to your side, matching your steps.

“Like I said before, I know nothing I say or do is going to set things right. But I um how would you feel if I give your car a tune up?”

“Tune up?” you asked dumbly, giving Red a glance. He wanted to give your old Honda a tune up as an apology? 

“You don’t take that old clunker in for maintenance like you should, but I know it’s because you couldn’t really afford to. Just let me take a look under the hood and get it in better condition,” Red said, once again not looking at you as he pulled at the collar of his sweater.

Actually you were a little worried about your car, sometimes it took three tries before you got it started. And the brakes didn’t work as well as you liked. Red was practically a mechanical engineer whiz who could probably take it apart and put it together again.

You were getting decently paid now and you could afford to drive it to a mechanic if you wanted to. But maybe taking Red’s offer would lead to something good, lead to you two being in a better place. Besides it was a tune up, he would probably change the oil and then point out a few places you need parts replaced. It wasn’t like he was offering to buy you a new car.

“Well… my car isn’t at it’s best. I mean you could just do the small stuff and let me know if I need any serious work done on it,” you said, finding yourself breathing deeper. You really did like the smell of the whiskey on this jacket and there was even a faint scent of cinnamon just like Red’s breath.

“Great kid, tomorrow is Saturday so I can begin then. You can hang out with your buddies Papyrus and Sans while I work on it.”

“Sounds good.”

“Oh wait! Um… so I did lose the arm-wrestling contest kid which means Black will want to train you. And knowing him, you’re going to be pushed through some serious physical exercises tomorrow.”

“Just how worried should I be about this training?”

“Tell Classic Paps tomorrow morning to have monster candy ready for you, a lot of monster candy.”


	12. A Soul to Soul Talk

“SURPRISE ATTACK!”

“AGH!”

You fell off the wooden beam, this time rolling with the fall so you didn’t hurt yourself as much. Seriously, who shouts ‘SURPRISE ATTACK’ as they do a surprise attack? The bone which slapped your back wasn’t a hard hit, Black was holding back. Didn’t change the fact that you’d have bruises everywhere.

“BETTER WARD, NO NEED FOR MONSTER CANDY FOR A TWISTED ANKLE THIS TIME. WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE IMPRESSIVE IF YOU DODGED IT THOUGH,” Black said with a huff. He was dressed in grey sweat pants and sweat shirt. You didn’t know what was more shocking when he showed up at your door in it. The fact that it wasn’t purple or the fact he was wearing clothing worth less then fifty bucks. It did fit though with the coach appearance he was trying to display.

Not a word was said about last night. How you practically ran off right after the arm-wrestling contest. You could only guess Red gave him details behind the nickname said and the skeleton was being nice enough to not bring it up.

“You attacked me from behind, how am I supposed to expect it? It’s not like I have eyes in the back of my head,” you said, shakily getting up and brushing your gym shorts.

“BECAUSE YOU WERE STARING AT THE BEAM INSTEAD OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS. LET’S SAY YOU’RE RUNNING FROM AN ENEMY, ARE YOU GOING TO STARE AT YOUR FEET INSTEAD OF WHAT’S GOING ON AROUND YOU?”

“I’m not sure if I can run across a beam without looking down, my sense of balance isn’t great,” you said with a sigh. Actually what you wanted to say was your sense of balance was only at human ability. From observation, you knew a monster could run across the beam, climb the wall next, and do all the rest of this obstacle course without once looking at their feet. But Black probably didn’t want to hear the ‘I’m only human’ excuse and honestly you didn’t want to start using it. Before you know it, you might start using the excuse even when it didn’t apply.

“WELL AT LEAST YOU ADMIT TO YOUR INFERIORITIES.”

“Did you seriously have to phrase it that way?”

“BELIEVE IT OR NOT I WAS BEING POLITE, NOW GO DRINK WATER AND HYDRATE YOURSELF WARD. YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES BEFORE WE START AGAIN.”

“Yes sir,” you said with a sigh, heading to the patio. Both of you were right behind the mansion where this mini obstacle course was setup. You were awakened at five in the morning to Black telling you to get ready. Considering you didn’t get home until midnight with Red, you weren’t at your best.

You grabbed the water bottle next to a chair, taking a sip at you surveyed the setup. A beam about a foot above ground to run on, next a wall which was fifteen feet high with knobby hand holds. Then you had ropes tied about three feet above ground which you were supposed to crawl under. Finally a rope tied to a tree branch you were supposed to climb to touch a flag. So far you only got as far as halfway up the wall with the surprise attacks. 

You were honestly a little surprised, you thought this would be about training you to fight. But you had to admit Black had a good point when he explained the reasoning.

_FIGHTING SHOULD BE THE LAST RESORT FOR YOU WARD. FIRST WE TRAIN YOU TO RUN FROM TROUBLE, SETTING UP OBSTALCES WHICH MAY SLOW DOWN YOUR ESCAPE._

“ALRIGHT, GET BACK IN PLACE,” Black said, producing a bone in his hand and twirling it in the air. Like before he’d move quickly, pausing only a couple of seconds to raise his arm to throw the bone. It was the only warning he was going to give you to avoid it. Well that and him screaming ‘SURPRISE ATTACK’ as he threw it. You stretched your legs before getting into position in front of the beam.

“GO!”

You tried to only glance down at the beam with every couple of steps, hoping it would be enough to keep track of running on it. Apparently something productive came from all these attempts because you didn’t trip even with your attention elsewhere. Almost as if your legs had developed a mind of their own to know how to run on the beam.

“SURPRISE ATTACK!”

This time you did see the flying bone coming, pausing to duck down, hearing the flying bone whiz by your head. With a grunt you were quickly back up and finished running off the beam. Next came the wall, you having both hands latching on knobs and feet resting on others. You remembered Black’s tips on how it was your legs which needed to do all the work, that’s where you’d get your momentum.

“SURPRISE ATTACK!”

You didn’t try dodging the bone, it wasn’t really possible, so instead you sent a foot out and kicked it in mid-air. You heard Black give a grunt of approval as you sent the bone flying to the ground, then turning to continue your climb.

You couldn’t stop yourself from grinning, you never got this far before. When you reached the top of the wall, you took a second to survey what was below you and feel proud of how you finally got to see what was over the edge of the wall.

“SURPRISE ATTACK!”

Which was your total undoing because this time you really didn’t keep an eye on your surroundings. You didn’t even know from what direction the bone was coming from, totally freezing in place. Flying bone made you lose a grip with one hand soon followed by the other.

_FUCK FUCK FUCK_

Fear rushed through you, more so then before because to put it simply- you never fell from this high up before. The free-falling sensation made you lightheaded as you closed your eyes.

“IDIOT!”

The word was shouted in your ear with Black’s usual volume as large arms wrapped around you and pulled you against the stout skeleton’s chest. You clung to him as the air rushed out of your lungs, very glad Black was not made out of real bone or this would have hurt a whole lot more.

The thick arms tightened on you, keeping you in a warm embrace which instantly felt safe.

“Idiot, Idiot, Idiot.”

The words whispered this time as Black kept his hold on you, hands going from one place to the other. Patting you in places as if to make sure you were all there.

“Sorry,” you said, shaking a little. You had gone from feeling proud to thinking you might die. The sudden shift in perspective didn’t help your nerves.

“It’s Fine Ward, Paps Made the Exact Same Mistake When I Was Training Him,” Black said with a sigh. There was a minute of silence as you both tried to process what he just said. You never heard Black talk about anything this personal. You never even heard him use Mutt’s actual name before.

“Did he ever get to the end?” you asked, feeling a need to respond. You heard a chuckle near your ear as the grip on you shifted, making you feel more comfortable being held against him.

“Only After I Promised Him a Bottle of Barbecue Sauce If He Passed,” Black said fondly, his distant look a good clue that his mind was elsewhere.

“So does that mean I get a reward if I make it to the end?”

You pulled your head back as you said the words, getting to see one of Black’s eyes arch. His usual scowl was gone, a grin in place. One hand went from the waist to your bottom, rubbing it softly. You were suddenly aware of just how intimate a position this was.

“And Just What Sort of Reward Would You Like?”

It didn’t take a genius to tell he was drawing the wrong conclusion here and it looks like Red wasn’t the only one who was getting flirty. With a gulp you asked your question while trying to ignore how good the touching felt.

“I um… one night being escort free?”

“WHAT!?”

The arms let you go, letting you fall on your butt. You pushed on with your explanation, getting the words out in a rush.

“There’s this guy I’m interested in dating and dating is normally a two person thing, not a three person thing. Well unless it’s a double date then it’s a four person thing, but I’d like to do the first type first-“

“STOP BABBLING!” Black said, scowl definitely back in place with hands on hips. You shut your mouth, hastily getting up. He was no longer looking at you, instead glaring at the wall as he grinds his sharp teeth. You could hear the molars scraping against each other.

“FINE! IF YOU CAN PASS THIS OBSTACLE COURSE THEN YOU GET ONE NIGHT ALONE WITH THIS ‘GUY’. IF NOT THOUGH, YOU OBVIOUSLY ARE NOT READY TO DATE.”

“What does passing an obstacle course have to do with being ready to date?”

“SPOKEN LIKE A TRUE BABY-BONES, DATING IS FILLED WITH DANGERS AND PROMISE OF PAIN.”

“I get the feeling dating in your world worked a bit differently compared to mine.”

“AND I GET THE FEELING YOU WON’T BE GOING ON ANY DATE IF YOU DON’T START MOVING!”

“Alright! Alright!”

The bones were bigger this time, you were sure of it. And there was definitely more shouting ‘SURPRISE ATTACK’ done, words sounding a lot more vicious. Still though after five more monster candies and a determination to get your reward, you found yourself touching the flag at the top of a rope. You slowly climbed down while breathing hard, feet landing on the ground as you looked up at Black.

He didn’t smile, but their was a upward twitch of his lip.

“I Supposed You Earned It. Go On Your Date Tonight, I Have Something Important To Do Anyway.”

“Great! Wait tonight? I mean that’s short notice-“

“-THEN YOU BEST CALL HIM NOW,” Black interrupted, before turning and stomping his way into the mansion.

“It can never be easy with that guy,” you said with a sigh, turning to head to your cabin and grab your phone. Luckily Brian did answer right away when you called.

“Hey Brian, um know it’s short notice, but how do you feel about dinner tonight?”

“SANS WILL YOU STOP STARING OUT THE WINDOW, YOU’RE WORRYING ME.”

“Just watching how the ‘training’ is going bro,” Sans said as he saw the two of you separate from his cabin window. His hands itched to grab the hole in his head when he saw Black touching your butt in way too friendly a place. A lot of skeletons were getting friendly with you and it didn’t take a genius to figure out why. With Tiffany not around, you were now the human everyone wanted to get to know.

He knew you were smart, you understood these jerks wouldn’t give you the time of day if the girl was still here. But he also saw bit by bit, you were warming up to them. You weren’t the type of stay angry with anyone even if they deserved it. And as one of your two best friends, he had to do something about it.

“Going for a walk Paps, be back in a few,” Sans said as he walked out. Paps didn’t ask to join, brotherly instincts letting him know Sans wanted to head out alone.

Thinking of the skeletons who he should be most concerned about, Red and Blue came to mind. Blue because he was on the verge of going nuts, not that Sans was one to talk about being all there. Red because the skeleton was looking to be more friends with benefits then just friends. You weren’t exactly the most experienced in bed and he didn’t want the edgy skeleton taking advantage of it.

He sniffed the air, his senses sharper then even normal monsters since they had to be used to hunt and eat. He found himself letting his cavity lead him to where the scents were strongest. Looks like today was a lucky day because he was able to find both of them in the garage. What they were doing there threw him.

The two of them were in the middle of lifting up a car engine out of your honda by hand, bone arms flexing and sweating as they dropped it on the floor. Both were dressed in jeans and t-shirts, one blue and one red, sleeves torn off.

“Mind telling me what you guys are up to? Normally I wouldn’t _car_, but that is my friend’s ride,” Sans said, getting rewarded a snort from Red. Blue simply turned and smiled which for some reason worried him. No frowning, no moaning, no reaction at all to the pun.

“HELLO SANS, WE’RE DOING A TUNE UP OF (Y/N)’S CAR!”

“Not that I’m an expert, but tune ups don’t normally involve removing the engine… or replacing it,” Sans said when he noticed another engine around the same size in the corner of the garage. He wasn’t a mechanic, but even he could tell it was brand new while the one just removed had rust and age.

“The kid hasn’t been maintaining the car right, definitely didn’t get oil changes as much as he should. Cheaper to just replace the whole thing versus him spending a bunch of money to try to repair it,” Red said, grabbing a rag to wipe the sweat off his skull.

“Well it’s damn nice of you to replace it, can’t help but notice all you guys are so nice to him now.”

He hadn’t changed his tone, done anything to sound threatening, but both skeletons instantly tensed up. Sans had the feeling the sweat coming off their skulls now wasn’t due to physical exertion.

“Crazy change in behavior here with your human gone, you know, the one you all soul bonded with. One second you all kicked him out on the cold street and-“

“-I DIDN’T WANT HIM KICKED OUT!”

Blue’s large body was shaking, hands curled into fists.

“I TRIED TELLING EVERYONE IT WASN’T RIGHT! I… SHE SAID IT WAS FOR THE BEST AND I LISTENED TO HER EVEN THOUGH I KNOW I SHOULDN’T HAVE.”

“Seriously? Going to blame the bitch for all your treatment of him? How convenient,” Sans growled, urge to grab his hole again causing his fingers to curl. Red was glancing between the two skeletons before putting a hand on Blue’s shoulder.

“Listen A-Sans, lets leave Blue out of this conversation ok? I fucked up, you want to tear me a new one for it then go ahead. Blue here though suffered the most from this fuck storm, no need for him to be here,” Red said, giving the shoulder a squeeze. Blue stopped shaking, taking a deep breath and patting the hand holding his shoulder. Sans felt himself undecided, Blue really did suffer the most, more then (Y/N) from Tiffany’s actions. At the same time he had to make sure he protected (Y/N).

“No I’m Good, You’re Worried I’m Going to Treat (Y/N) Terribly When We Get the Others Back.”

“No, I’m worried you won’t accept him moving on and finding someone way better then you,” Sans said, with more concern then anger. There wasn’t any more shaking, but the big skeleton did flinch at the words.

“I Know I Missed My Chance, I Just Want to be Part of His Life. I’ll Take Whatever His Willing To Give Me,” Blue said, eyes bright and somehow hard, as if they were made out of sapphires. It used to be Blue couldn’t go a couple of days without his eyes turning into stars. When was the last time it happened? Sans was willing to bet those eyes hadn’t formed into stars once since the machine incident.

“Good to hear, you though are a different problem,” Sans said, now turning his attention to Red who let go of Blue. He pulled nervously at his shirt collar, not looking directly at San’s red eye.

“Hey now, the kid can make his own choices and the second he tells me to back off then I back off. What happens between me and (Y/N) is our business,” Red said, crossing his arms. Sans had a feeling he was trying to appear tough and failing miserably at it. Under the duel glare of both him and even Blue, the edgy skeleton was sweating even more.

“The kid isn’t your backup fuck toy until the bitch returns. You’re soul bonded to her which means when she’s back-“

“-soul bond is gone.”

Sans stared at him for a second, red eye widening. He couldn’t have heard Red right, soul bonds lasted forever. Well at least until one of the mates died. No amount of distance was supposed to break it, not even going to a different plane of existence. Otherwise taking a shortcut would have caused the soul bond for Judges with Tiffany to break way before now, when the Judge was in the void for a couple of seconds.

“MINE BROKE TOO WHEN THE OTHERS DISAPPEARED, THE ONLY GOOD THING ABOUT ALL THIS,” Blue said, scratching his chest.

“Truth is my bond didn’t feel all that strong. When it first formed it looked all nice and fresh, like this silver rope. But then I um… got jealous a lot and angry, the rope suddenly looked a bit more frail and ugly by the time the chick broke the machine,” Red said, words coming out of his mouth reluctantly. It was taboo to talk about the state of your soul with anyone except for your mate or close family. 

“HONESTLY MINE DIDN’T EVEN START OUT LOOKING GREAT. I THINK IT’S BECAUSE (Y/N) FOUND US RIGHT AS IT WAS FORMING AND… I Realized I Was Going To Hurt Him,” Blue said, nearly whispering the last words. Stars, Sans so wanted to be angry at him when he said that. But it was hard to when Blue looked like he was on the verge of crying.

“So no worries about us hooking up with the bitch again ok? When we do get everyone back, no way am I touching the skank,” Red said, words ringing true.

“Maybe not, but your brother will still be bonded to her. And I want (Y/N) to have as little to do with her as possible. Go find someone else to check out as a mate, his off limits,” Sans said, turning to leave as he saw the skeleton’s eyes widen in horror. Looks like Red didn’t think about how Tiffany was still staying in the family even with the bond broken. He wanted to say more, but he was distracted. He just realized something, something no one else knew.

He found himself walking out of the garage, ignoring Blue’s yell of goodbye. He walked straight to the cabin. He needed to talk to Paps about this. Needed to figure out what he should do with this info. Everyone around here, except for Paps and (Y/N), assumed he was stupid. Like the hole in his head made him less smart. They were wrong though, the hole may have made him crazier, but not stupider. 

Tell that to his twin though, who didn’t once ask for his help in fixing the machine. (Y/N) offered to put a good word in with the ambassador so he could get paid to help fix the machine when it was sabotaged. He turned the offer down though, not really wanting to help get Tiffany back in their lives any sooner. Now he wished he was a bit more stupid because ignorance really is bliss sometimes.

It took only a minute to reach the cabin door and get inside. The familiar setting doing nothing to ease the tension in his spine.

“SANS YOU’RE BACK, HOW WAS YOUR WALK?”

“Paps… I know why the machine chose to grab those guys to go with Tiffany.”

“RED ARE YOU OK?”

Red went from staring at the engine to Blue.

“What? Aw I’m fine, shit I should be asking you that question with the way Sans gave you the third degree,” Red said, shit face grin in place.

It was funny how they were working on a car today and just a couple of days ago they were beating the crap out of each other. Red was a fell monster though and he was used to problems being solved with fists and then jokes later. He could still recall the fight they had, how Blue had gone totally offensive, doing nothing to defend himself against hits.

It looked like he wanted to get struck as he fought, a realization which made Red quickly lose motivation to continue the brawl. Now with both of them healed up, Red thought this working together on (Y/N)’s car would be a nice peace offering. From the way the skeleton quickly agreed, maybe he was thinking the same thing.

“I’M HONESTLY SURPRISED HE DIDN’T TALK TO US SOONER. IT’S JUST I CAN TELL YOU’RE WORRIED BECAUSE YOUR BROTHER IS STILL UM…”

“It’s fine Blue, let’s continue the whole tune up thing later today ok? I think I need a beer from the fridge,” Red said, already heading out. Blue simply nodded, moving to put tools up. Red’s mind raced to thinking of what Sans just pointed out to him. The Boss was still soul bonded to the bitch. It wouldn’t be the first time a soul bond turned out to be a bad choice, especially in his world. It was rare, but he heard of monsters who soul bonded and then later wanted nothing to do with the other.

The biggest problem was boss still didn’t know what a sleaze Tiffany really was. He was still lovey dovey like Red used to be. And the sabotaging of the machine might not be enough to snap him out of it. What really opened Red’s eyes was seeing how (Y/N) treated them. His sincerity which made Tiffany’s manipulations pretty obvious. 

Red was going to have to figure something out, he couldn’t let his bro end up stuck with the bitch. Easiest way to end a bond was death. Could get messy though, he’d have to pull up Classic San’s Soul Study research and see if he could find an alternative. He wouldn’t make it the first solution, but if nothing else worked…

“RED!”

Red turned, hand raised to fire off magic before he realized what he was doing. Black stood in the living room with arms crossed. Fuck he really was out of it, he didn’t even realize he stepped inside the mansion.

“Shit don’t scare me like that! Could have gaster blaster you,” Red grumbled, lowering his arm.

“GET YOURSELF TOGETHER, WE’RE GOING HUNTING TONIGHT,” Black said with a predator grin. It took a second to realize what Red was saying, then he found himself matching the grin. Nothing like hunting down bad humans to get your mind off problems. 


	13. Twin Outings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning- Sexual themed scene at the end.

You were trying to be sneaky. Red had already said your car wouldn’t be ready until tomorrow morning, making you kind of regret taking his tune up offer. Maybe he wasn’t as good with cars as your first thought and was having trouble with it? Regardless that left you with taking a uber to the restaurant where you were supposed to meet Brian. 

So trying to walk quietly as possible, you headed to the front door of the mansion to get to the road. Then you’d walk for a good ten minutes and try to get your uber. No need to get a uber here… where others might find out you’re going out on a date.

“(Y/N) WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”

_Shit Shit Shit Shit_

Of course it had to be the one skeleton you absolutely did not want to know you were heading to a date. You turned to see Blue with hands on hips, cocking his head to the side as he gave you a puzzled look.

“I was just getting a uber to head out to a um..”

“RELAX (Y/N), BLACK ALREADY TOLD US YOU WERE GOING ON A DATE TONIGHT.”

_Black if this is part of my training, dealing with a ticked off Blue, you’re even more sadistic then I first thought._

Blue didn’t look pissed off though, he was smiling. It was a genuine smile too, you could usually tell when he was putting on fake cheer. He approached and pulled something out of his pocket, your ears heard a jingle sound before you felt the keys placed in your hand.

“DIDN’T I TELL YOU HE’D REALIZE HOW AWESOME YOU ARE? BUT NO WAY ARE YOU MEETING HIM IN AN UBER. CLASSIC PAPS WANTED ME TO GIVE YOU THOSE, YOU GET TO BORROW HIS CONVERTIBLE,” Blue said, giving your shoulder a pat. You stared dumbly down at the keys, they definitely were for the cherry red mustang convertible which was Classic Pap’s treasured baby. You recognized the golden skull key chain which you always thought was cool.

“HE WOULD HAVE GIVEN THEM TO YOU HIMSELF, BUT HE HAD BUSINESS WITH THE AMBASSADOR TONIGHT. GOTTA SAY, THOSE CLOTHES LOOK SHARP,” Blue said, cyan eyes studying you from head to toe. You found yourself blushing and ego rising under the praise.

“Thanks I was trying real hard to look good. What do you think?” you asked, looking down at your clothes. It was a casual restaurant of course, just a first date, but you put a lot of thought in your choices. A shirt with a Japanese symbol of peace displayed on it, a leather jacket recently cleaned, and your best pair of jeans.

“I Think You Should Stop Worrying If You Look Good, You Were Already There.”

You lifted your head, finding his glowing eyes still studying you. The smile still in place but appearing a little sadder.

“You never said stuff like that before.”

The words were out of your mouth before you thought better. Damn it, things were going fine. He wasn’t freaking out about you going on a date, he wasn’t calling you his ‘boyfriend, why did you have to say something so stupid? It just didn’t seem fair though, why couldn’t he make you feel this way before? Like you were someone special.

He must have saw a flash of fear because he was raising his hands in a peaceful gesture, taking a step back.

“(Y/N) It’s Ok, I’m Not Going To… Force Anything. And You’re Right, I Never Said Stuff Like That Back When It Mattered Most. Sometimes We Don’t Know Just How Important Something Is Until It’s Gone,” Blue said, now looking at the floor instead of you, scratching the back of his skull. The last words came out a whisper and in a moment of clarity you realized, he was thinking of Stretch. 

It felt like a lifetime since you last hugged Blue, but there was still a familiarity to it. The moment your arms wrapped around his torso and head touched his chest, you got a whiff of the same mint scent he always had on him. The body warm and sturdy under your touch. Your instincts acted before your brain, you only now realizing this might not be a good idea.

You heard a quick intake in breath, feeling the skeleton freeze in place. You gulped as you let go, looking up to see Blue’s glowing face, cheeks turning blue.

“Sorry, you um looked like you needed that,” you said, taking a step back. He stared dumbly at you for a moment, before shaking his head and rapping his own skull with a fist softly.

“NEHEHE, I’M TOTALLY BEING A DOWNER HERE. DON’T MIND ME (Y/N), JUST HAVE A GOOD TIME ON YOUR DATE, OK?” Blue said, ruffling your hair playfully. You nearly squeaked, taking another step back as you tried to get your hair back in place.

“Hey I spent nearly an hour trying to get this right! I’m not sure if I should be taking Classic Pap's car though,” you said, pulling the keys back out. Classic Paps was normally generous with his cousins when it came to anything. Need to borrow clothes, sure thing, need for him to cook something, will be ready in a jiffy. But you only witnessed one time someone asked to borrow the mustang, it was Edge whose car was in the shop. 

_ABSOLUTELY NOT!_

The denial made with such emotional outrage made everyone turn mute, even Edge who normally didn’t take refusal well. After that day, no one ever asked Classic Paps if they could borrow his car.

“OH NO, I’M THE ONE IN TROUBLE IF CLASSIC PAPS COMES HOME AND FINDS YOU DIDN’T TAKE HIS OFFER. NOW HURRY UP! YOU’RE GOING TO BE LATE FOR YOUR FIRST DATE!”

You found Blue turning you around and with ease, pushing you towards the front door.

“Ok ok, shesh! Thank Classic Paps for me!”

The door closed behind you, your ears not picking up his soft response.

“Thank You For The Hug, Even Now You’re Too Good To Me…”

“YOU GOT THE TOOLS FOR OUR HUNT?” Black asked, both standing in Grillby’s parking lot. Next to them was a black sedan with a fake license plate. Red grunted as he pulled open the duffel bag he’d been carrying over his shoulder.

“Duct tape, chloroform, chains, and anything else needed to kidnap a human and scare them shitless when doing it,” Red said, jiggling the items in the bag.

“I HAD A PRIVATE DETECTIVE TRACK THE LICENSE NUMBER. THE MEATHEAD’S NAME IS SAM FRICKS, HE HASN’T BEEN TO HIS HOME BUT I TRACKED THE GPS OF HIS CAR,” Black said as he pressed an app on his phone. He got into the driver’s seat as he scanned a map on the screen. As Red got into the passenger side, his reminded of the kind of resources Black had. After the machine brought them, everyone was relatively good financial thanks to the value of gold. Black though was the one who doubled his fortune in a month.

He did so well that everyone agreed to let him handle the finances for the family. He just appeared to know exactly which firms to hire, which investments to make, and keep the money raking in. Red didn’t know all the specifics, but he heard Black employ private detectives and even computer hackers to get financial info which always gave him an edge at the stock market.

“ALSO CLASSIC PAPS SOMEHOW LEARNED OF OUR HUNT. HE GAVE CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS THAT WE CAN BRUISE, NOT KILL,” Black grumbled as he pulled the car out of the parking lot.

“Shit,” Red growled, but he didn’t really mean it. He didn’t know how Classic Paps found out, but he was actually glad Classic Paps made sure things didn’t go too far. He wanted to make this Scott and Sam pay for hurting (Y/N), but he wasn’t really looking to kill anyone. He hadn’t had to take a life since he got to this world and that felt… well good.

Black would occasionally check his phone as they drove down the interstate. After over an hour he took an exit which lead to a cheap motel. The half-lit sign noted the place as Green Hills, paint peeling from the sign and the brick building itself not looking better. Shingles needed replacing and rusty bars protected the glass windows.

Black stopped just short of going into the parking lot.

“Take Out The Cameras,” Black said, keeping his voice low. The instant command normally irked Red, he wasn’t Mutt. Only Boss got to give him orders like that, but for tonight he’d make an exception as long as the guy didn’t get too uppity.

In a blink of an eye he was on a rooftop, surveying the long building, a dozen doors lining up against the wall. His night vision instantly picked up two cameras, one for the reception room and the other on the doors. At the reception room he had a clear view through the window. A chubby guy slept at the desk, snoring as he leaned back in the chair. It only took a flicker of a wrist and a magic bone went through the camera lens. The soft crunch not even heard by the man. He did the same for the other camera before short cutting back into the car.

“Done,” Red said with a yawn. With a nod Black pulled the car into the parking lot.

You pulled the mustang into the restaurant parking lot, palms sweaty. You were glad for Classic Paps generous offer, you really were. You were also so terrified of crashing the automobile wonder that you ended up going five miles under the speed limit and driving like a granny. You were pretty sure a couple of drivers who passed by were shaking their heads in shame seeing how the car wasn’t getting its full potential.

The restaurant was a Mexican place, rainbow curtains hanging on the windows while trumpet music played in the background. You saw Brian at the front door, he gave a whistle as you stepped out of the car and walked up.

“Nice ride, I have to say you got good taste,” Brian said with a grin. He was dressed in jeans and a red t-shirt which hugged his body nicely.

“I’d like to say it’s mine, but honestly a friend is just letting me borrow it,” you said sheepishly, scratching your head.

“Your must have some good friends. Let’s go get a table,” Brian said as you two walked in.

“Nice place,” you commented, trying to keep the small talk going.

“It’s near where I live. I like the burritos,” Brian said with a wink.

Black parked the car right next to a silver Blazer he recognized.

“This Is The Car,” Black said as he got out. He sniffed the air, still remembering Scott’s scent. The weakling’s scent trailed to the nearest door.

“Bring The Stuff,” Black said, rolling sleeves back to show his thick forearms. He didn’t want to risk damaging his shirt if there was a struggle.

“You bring the fucking stuff, you got hands,” Red grumbled, tossing the bag to him. Black gritted his teeth as he grabbed the bag in mid-air, stopping just short of yelling at his cousin. He understood the message, Red was letting him know he’d only follow orders so much.

Mutt would do the exact same thing if he was in a situation where he had to work with Edge. So as much as it grated him, he wasn’t going to push that his authority should be respected. With a grumble of his own, he swung the bag over his shoulder. His footsteps were surprisingly light for someone so big as he silently approached the door, Red behind him.

“Did your friends call back yet?”

“No and stop fucking asking! You ask that damn question every half hour!”

Black recognized the first voice as Scott, he could only assume the second voice was of the thug he escaped with.

“Well what do you expect! We’ve been at this stupid motel for days and you said your had friends who could take out that monster so we’d both be safe!”

“I didn’t say shit about us being safe. I said my friends would help me get pay back on the fucking freak. Then I’m high tailing it out of here. I just let you tag along because I thought you might want a piece of the action. Shit am I regretting letting you stay.”

“Hey it’s my money which paid for this motel room. If anyone should leave it’s you!”

“Oh I’d like to see you try you skinny geek.”

“Fuck, sounds like we’ll be saving the stupid kid from getting himself killed,” Red whispered with a roll of his red eyes.

“I Need The Thug’s Phone. We Need To Learn About These ‘friends’,” Black whispered back, opening the bag to pull out a white clothe and bottle of chloroform. They had to move soon, the parking lot was mostly empty so there weren’t a lot of occupants. But things would turn south fast if another guest just happen to walk out of their room.

Black handed the drenched clothe to Red, both of them could smell the chloroform but it didn’t effect their monster bodies in the slightest. With a slight movement of his finger, Black used gravity magic to turn the lock. The click wasn’t heard because a grunt of pain covering it.

“Yeah you like that, going to beat you good for threatening me!”

The door opened to show Scott with his arms covering his head, nose gushing blood. A much larger man knelt over him, fist raised, staring stupidly at the two skeletons. He didn’t even get a chance to open his mouth before Red appeared behind him, slapping the clothe on nose and mouth.

There was a couple of seconds where the man tried to claw the bones off his face, then his body slumped against Red. Black quickly closed the door behind him as he walked in, finding it ironic how their arrival had saved the little coward.

“W..what are you doing here?” Scott stuttered, crawling backwards from them as he wiped his nose with a shirt sleeve, covering it in blood.

“Well first we’re going to finish what he started,” Red said, tossing the unconscious man against a wall none so gently.

“This.. this is fucked up! (Y/N) has not one, but two monsters to fight for him! I mean you guys got magic and stuff!”

“Oh and you play so fair, using dumbasses like this one,” Red said, giving the body next to him a kick.

“YOU ARE TRULY DISPECABLE, GOING THIS FAR JUST BECAUSE MY WARD BEAT YOU FAIRLY IN A COMPETITION FOR A JOB,” Black said, walking towards Scott while cracking a knuckle.

“Fairly!? He’s a monster fucker! He only got that position because he bent over for some monster! Tiffany told me all about it!”

The two skeletons stopped in a mid-motion, glowing pupils shrinking as they stared at Scott in surprise. 

“And then he shouts ‘SURPRISE ATTACK!’ as he throws the magic bone at me!”

“Seriously? Jeez that’s some weird self-defense training,” Brian said before stuffing his mouth with another nacho. So far things have been going good with Brian, very good. He spoke about the cities his been to and the unique sites of them from New York’s Statue of Liberty to the Caesar Palace at Las Vegas. Apparently, his job took him to a lot of places.

The only interesting things you could think to note was your interactions with the skeletons. Whether it was how Papyrus always beat you at Smash Brothers because he had crazy moves or how Sans drank at least four bottles of ketchup every day. The only taboo subject you didn’t speak about was the machine and the missing skeletons.

“Well I think the training will help.”

“What made you want the training?”

“Oh I um… almost got mugged, like assaulted. Luckily a friend saved me, but I wanted to be ready if it happens again,” you said, suddenly finding the salsa interesting.

“First the car, now a friend saves you too. I’ll say it again, you have great friends,” Brian said before popping a chip into his mouth.

“Um… yeah.”

_His not really a friend though right? I mean he saved me because it was his job as my bodyguard, his duty._

At least with Classic Paps you knew where you stood with him. A newly formed friendship he appeared determined to have with you. Black though gave you all sorts of mixed messages. He ridicules you, he saves you, he throws bones at you which hurt, and then he touches you in places way too intimately. Just thinking about him gave you a headache.

“Hey I don’t know about you, but I’m not quite ready for this night to end yet. Want to come by my place?”

“Huh?”

Ok not your best response, but you were in deep thought when the big question was asked. Brian rolled his eyes and then pokes your forehead, each word came with a poke.

“Do… You… Want… To… Come… To… My… Place? I was thinking we’d watch a movie and stuff our faces with popcorn.”

“Ok, sure,” you said with a grin, swatting his finger away.

_Wait… he couldn’t mean he wants to… naw, stop overanalyzing things._

“Kid if this is a trick, things are going to get real ugly and **I’m so going to have a good time**.”

“How is stating the facts a trick? Tiffany lives with you guys, she told me right after I got the rejection what happened. He got the position by letting a monster fuck him- urk!”

Black took a couple of steps forward and backhanded him across the face. Scott’s right cheek began to turn purple and swell up.

“WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE RAT! I WON’T HAVE YOU SPEAK SO INSULTING ABOUT MY WARD. WHO DID TIFFANY SAY (Y/N) SLEPT WITH?”

“I.. *cough* don’t know, not like she shared specifics. Just said it was a monster who had a say on who would be hired… I figured it was you,” Scott finished, before spitting blood on the floor. Looked like Black’s slap caused bleeding in the mouth, not that Red gave a shit. Fuck, this was supposed to be a fun night of bashing heads. Instead the most evil bitch in the world was putting a damper on their fun and she wasn’t even on this fucking plane of existence.

Black turned and gave him a silent glance. Nothing really needed to be said, given everything else which happened with the harpy, this news shouldn’t even be too shocking. A quite agreement was made to believe Scott which now led to a change in plans.

“HERE’S WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN RAT. ASSUMING YOU WANT TO LIVE.”

“Yes! I mean yes I do want to live!” Scott nearly whimpered, rubbing his cheek.

“GOOD! YOU ARE GOING TO TURN YOURSELF IN. RUN DOWN THE ROAD FROM THIS MOTEL UNTIL YOU FIND A BUSINESS WHICH WILL LET YOU CALL NINE-ONE-ONE. YOU’LL BLAME ALL YOUR INJURIES ON THE THUG OVER THERE.”

“Ok, sure! Sure!”

“GIVE ME YOUR PHONE.”

“Um here,” Scott said, tossing his cell phone to the skeleton who quickly caught and pocketed it.

“AND YOU WILL NOT SPEAK OF THIS FALSE RUMOR TO ANYONE. YOU WILL SAY YOU COULDN’T COPE WITH THE LOST OF THE JOB WHICH DROVE YOU TO THESE… DISGUSTING ACTS.”

“I.. I can do that, I mean I know you don’t want anyone to know (Y/N)-“

“-his not sleeping with any of us dumbass, Tiffany played you. She’s been going out of her way to make sure no one liked the kid. Heck his on a date with a human right now as we speak,” Red said, the very familiar feeling of jealousy rising with the words. He tampered down the emotion the best he could as Scott stared from one to the other in shock, face turning dark.

“That Bitch,” he muttered, wiping more blood from his mouth. Black snorted as he took a step back.

“YOU ARE FAR FROM BEING INNOCENT IN ALL THIS. NOW GET OUT,” Black growled nodding to the door. The former student stumbled onto his feet, running to the door and quite frankly looking a little crazed as he did it. The door swung and shut with a bang, his figure quickly disappearing past the window.

“Surprised you let him off so easily, figured you’d want a couple more slaps at least,” Red said as he crouched down to search the body next to him.

“I Don’t Want My Ward Hearing The Rat’s Motives, Easier To Get An Agreement If I Don’t Make Him Lose His Teeth,” Black said, crouching down next to Red. Red pulled a phone out of a pocket, handing it to Black.

“Probably password protected.”

“I HAVE SOFTWARE ON MY OWN PHONE TO GET PAST SUCH FLIMSY DEFENSES.”

“…think she spread other rumors about (Y/N) at school as well?”

“He Didn’t Appear To Have Friends There As Far As I Could Observe. I Assumed It Was Because His Shy, Now I’m Thinking Differently,” Black said, slipping the phone in his pocket.

“Yeah… I’m assuming this one is losing his teeth,” Red said with a smirk, hoping the change in subject would lighten the mood. Nothing like beating the crap out of a a-hole to cheer someone up. Black returned the smirk although Red was pretty sure his heart wasn’t into it.

“Yes, I Think Having His Friends Watch a Video of Him Losing Everyone Of His Teeth Will Send the Right Message.”

You don’t know at what point you went from cuddling with Brian on the couch to a lot more, but you both were suddenly a lot less interested in the Avengers movie you had been watching. His tongue went into your mouth, playing with yours, hands grabbing your belt and undoing it.

You were too busy feeling the muscles on his firm body, shirt removed to let you touch warm hard flesh. There were occasional grunts of pleasure from him as he finally had your belt undone and was pulling your pants off. You didn’t expect things to go this fast. Both fear and excitement warring inside you as you watched him undo his own pants.

“As good looking as the shirt makes you, how about you take it off,” Brian said with a wink, pale skin flushing up in excitement. So he did like what you chose. All the effort to dress good really did pay off, a lot more then you thought it would. 

_I Think You Should Stop Worrying If You Look Good, You Were Already There._

You stopped in mid-motion, Blue’s voice in your head. Damn it, you didn’t want Blue’s voice in your head. Not just when you were about to do something like this, something you haven’t done before. With a huff you took the shirt off and tossed it, getting rewarded another strong kiss from Brian.

_Is Blue waiting for me to return?_

“Ugh!”

You found yourself pushing Brian back as you shook your own head. Why did you have to think that? It wasn’t relevant even if it was true. You weren’t with Blue, you were with Brian and supposed to be thinking about him.

“Hey everything ok?” Brian asked, cocking his head to the side.

“Yeah, I just…”

You didn’t even know what to say. Leave it to your own head to ruin the mood. Brian smiled, grabbing his pants to pull them back on.

“No, no, I get it. We’ve been going way too fast here for just a first date. I shouldn’t have pushed for sex this fast,” Brian said, not appearing at all annoyed by the halt in things. You meanwhile were annoyed… or were you relieved? Wait, maybe it was you annoyed it stopped because you were thinking about Blue but relieved you didn’t go too fast? Damn it why couldn’t you stop thinking about Blue!?

“Hey even if we aren’t um doing it. Ok if I spend the night?” you asked, as you went to grab your pants. It was ridiculous of you to feel shy around Brian when he saw you totally naked, but the feeling was there.

“Sure thing, I’m for a good spooning,” Brian said before giving you a kiss on the cheek. You smiled as you watched him get up and head to the bedroom, enjoying seeing his back muscles. You may not be getting any tonight, but at least you’d enjoy not sleeping alone.

_And if Blue is waiting for me, well he can just wait all night. Because I’m not going to worry about what he thinks._

And you were going to stop thinking about him, even if you needed to count sheep while in bed with Brian to do it.


	14. Having a Sample

You were tip-toing, yes literally tip-toing through the front door of the mansion with eyes on the backdoor. You never more wished the back property did not have a high fence or the fact you still didn’t have a key to the outside gate. You were totally getting a copy of that key before the day was over.

It was around seven in the morning and you did not want anyone catching how you spent all night at Brian’s place, especially Blue. Just when you thought escape was in your grasp, the backdoor only five feet away, a sexy baritone voice filled the air.

“Well look who’s doing the walk of shame or should I say tip-toing it?”

You sighed as you turned, seeing Red leaning against a wall. Grinning no doubt at the display you put on when trying to sneak to the backdoor. You had been so focused on it you didn’t even notice him there.

He walked up to you, coming within your personal space before you could make a sound. Your cheeks turned red as you heard him take a deep sniff right next to your ear.

“Yep, still as virgin as a nun’s bottom.”

“What the- Oh God!”

You nearly leaped away from Red, face turning even redder. Could skeletons seriously tell by smell whether you had ever actually…

The thought was interrupted from seeing Red literally collapsed to the floor, howling with laughter as he grabbed his ribs.

“Muhahaha! Christ I can’t believe you fell for it! You actually thought I could tell by smell!”

“S.. so you can’t actually smell whether I um did it?” you muttered, desperately needing to know. The thought of Sans, Papyrus, Blue, or any skeleton able to pick up your sex history with a sniff was terrifying. Red finally got himself under control, chuckling as he got up.

“Naw, but I got news for you, I think anyone who got to know you longer then a week can tell you’re a virgin. And I knew you didn’t do the dirty deed since you weren’t walking funny,” Red said, wiping his eyes.

“You don’t know that,” you said, crossing your arms. Damn it now you were starting to wish you went all the way with Brian. If only so you didn’t feel the need to die of pure embarrassment now.

“Hey now don’t get mad. It’s a good thing you didn’t put out on a first date,” Red said, grin still in place as he approached and put both hands on your shoulders. The large heavy hands squeezed your shoulders gently, his face coming within inches of yours.

“But if you want some tips before it happens, let me know. Or better yet, we can practice it so you know for sure what you like or don’t like,” Red said, warm cinnamon breath wafting across your face. What made you shiver was how all teasing and joking disappeared with the words. His tone was totally serious, no joking being done with this proposal.

You had ignored this for too long, him being flirty. You not doing anything about the flirting. It wasn’t even flirting now, it was him making a serious offer. You could tell from the way his red eyes bored into yours, how his hands kept squeezing your shoulders.

You swallowed and took a step back. Slowly opening your mouth to ask a question you just couldn’t bring yourself to ask before. A question you knew you needed an answer to before this got further out of hand.

“What about when Tiffany returns?”

The silence couldn’t have been more obvious. You both knew you weren’t asking if the proposal was still there if Tiffany returns. You were asking for… some insight as to how things were going to be. He didn’t look angry though or irritated. If you had to put a name to the expression, the way he smiled, you’d say he looked proud.

“Good for you kid, about time you made sure to set the record straight.”

Damn it and now you were blushing again. Because the compliment sounded so sincere and felt good to receive.

“Let me ask you a question kid, what do you think’s going to happen when she gets back?”

“I think she’s going to want everything to go back the way it was, including me not being here.”

“I asked you what would happen, not what the chick wants to happen.”

“There’s a good chance both are the same answer,” you said, suddenly having trouble looking at him. Red stepped forward into your personal space again, this time you had no choice but look at him. His chin was inches from your eyes.

“Well I aint one for big speeches so I’ll keep this simple. First the soul bond with the bitch is broken. And second, here’s a clue on the chances the said bitch is getting everything she wanted back.”

Phalanges tapped your chin and gently raised your face up. Sharp teeth gently brushed against your lips as a tongue slipped into your mouth. You didn’t even realize it was there until the warm flesh was moving against your tongue affectionately. 

He was better than Brian. It was the first thought you had and probably the second thought as well. Brian had been too aggressive and didn’t have nearly a tongue this large in your mouth. Red had moved one hand to hold your neck, red glowing tongue slowly and patiently sliding from one end of your mouth to the other. He technically shouldn’t have lips, but white flesh came closer, sealing the tongue in an airtight vacuum.

That’s when you moaned uncontrollable and felt something jerk below the waist.

“UH-HUM!”

The mouth released yours, giving you a chance to take a deep breath. A line of drool connecting your mouths for a second before breaking.

Both of you turned to see Classic Paps at the kitchen entrance, arching an eye with arms crossed. You felt the hand holding your neck let go as you hastily wiped your saliva covered mouth with a sleeve.

“Well that’s my signal to exit, later,” Red said with a salute before shortcutting. You stared blankly at the spot Red was at only a second ago, before slowly turning your head back towards Classic Paps. Yep he abandoned you, sometimes it was just plain not fair for him to be able to do that.

“WELL I SUPPOSE HE DECIDED TO FINALLY MAKE A MOVE. TO BE HONEST I’M SURPRISED IT TOOK HIM THIS LONG,” Classic Paps said with a sigh as he approached you. You noticed then he wasn’t wearing the shiny armor. Now he was wearing a white shirt with the words ‘BAD TO THE BONE’ with a pair of red shorts and sneakers. 

“BUT WE HAVE MORE URGENT THINGS TO DISCUSS BESIDES RED’S BEHAVIOR, SUCH AS HOW YOU’VE BEEN GONE… ALL NIGHT,” Classic Paps said in a parental voice with arms still crossed. You gulped, not liking the judgmental look in his eyes. You didn’t even understand how his look could come off as judgmental when he had no eyeballs, but it was there.

“I THINK WE NEED TO DISCUSS THE DANGERS OF DATING, LUCKILY I’VE DONE A LOT OF RESEARCH ON THE MATTER. WHY I USED TO HAVE ONLY ONE BOOK ON THE SUBJECT, BUT NOW HAVE A DOZEN,” Classic Paps said with a raised finger.

“Y..you don’t say,” you muttered, feeling yourself break out into a sweat. 

“YES, I BELIEVE A COUPLE OF HOURS DISCUSSING THE SUBJECT WILL DO YOU GOOD (Y/N). NOW FIRST LET’S DISCUSS THE PROPER PROTECTIONS WHEN HUMANS FORNICATE-“

“-nope! Can’t talk about it because I um it’s on the list! The list of things includes not talking about um.. what you want to talk about like ever!”

“(Y/N) I’VE STUDIED YOUR LIST OF REQUIRMENTS TO BE EMPLOYED HERE AND I’M CERTAIN THERE WAS NO PART-“

“-I just amended the list! This is me, (Y/N), officially amended the said list to add in a new requirement. No educational lectures on the subject you were just about to lecture me on!”

“WELL I’M NOT SURE IT’S FAIR OF YOU TO CHANGE THE REQUIREMENTS THIS LATE IN YOUR EMPLOYMENT (Y/N). WHY DIDN’T YOU INSIST ON THIS RESTRICTION SOONER?”

_Because I didn’t think I’d ever have you try to give me the birds and the bees talk!_

There was a twitch at the corner of Classic Pap’s mouth as if his serious expression was barely under control. Was he messing with you? You couldn’t be sure, his poker face was just too good.

“Well how about I let you have a new requirement as well then?” you asked, desperate to change the subject. Now he was rubbing his chin, slowly rubbing his chin. Oh yeah, this skeleton was totally messing with you.

“VERY WELL (Y/N), MY REQUIREMENT IS THAT ALL OF US AT THE MANSION GO ON AN OUTING. HAVE A BONDING EXPERIENCE FOR ONE DAY BY GOING SOME WHERE FUN.”

Your shoulders relaxed on hearing the words, well at least he wasn’t demanding something crazy.

“I’m actually good with that, anywhere particular you want to go to?”

“HOW ABOUT THE BEACH? UNDYNE HAS BEEN TRYING TO GET ME TO GO FOR A WHILE NOW. IT WOULD BE GOOD TO SEE HER,” Classic Paps said with a genuine smile. You returned the smile, nodding. At this point you probably would have agreed to anything just as long as it got away from the word ‘fornicate’.

“EXCELLENT, LET’S DO IT IN A WEEK. I’LL SHARE THE NEWS WITH THE OTHERS!” Classic Paps said before lifting you up in a hug. You nearly yelped, but soon returned the hug.

“Yahoo, cute guy, you listening?”

“Oh sorry,” you said, trying to focus on Brian who was seated right across from you. It was only a couple of days later and you were on your second date. A lot had happened between those two days though.

You shared the news of the beach with Sans and Papyrus, quick to note it was a trip Undyne would show up at. There wasn’t a need to talk about them going because it just wasn’t happening. Sans and Papyrus both suffered permanent, crippling blows from a Undyne, seeing a different version of her was not going to be a vacation for them in anyway. You promised them an outing afterwards, something special for just the three of them.

Black told you Scott had turned himself in to the police and so escorting would no longer be necessary. But you both were still doing the self-defense training which usually involved you dodging bones. Red hadn’t said a word about the kiss and pretty much acted like nothing happened. And you were too cowardly to bring it up. 

The idea of romantically being involved with a skeleton was foreign after the mess with Blue. Going out with Brian felt… safe. Yep safe was good, let’s stick with safe. Red finally gave you back your Honda which felt like it had triple the horsepower now. You were pretty sure his ‘little tweaks’ to your car weren’t so little.

Now you were at Grillby’s on your second date. Brian had really wanted to come here after hearing your stories about monster drinks. You were going to totally blow this date though if you didn’t stop daydreaming about recent events.

“What will it be gentlemen?” Grillby asked, as he approached. Brian stared for a second and you couldn’t really blame him, seeing a fire elemental for the first time was pretty much a shock to any person even if they knew about monsters. You politely coughed which jerked Brian out of his state. He blushed before turning to you.

“How about you order first (Y/N)?”

“I’ll have your burger with fries. Also the Will-o-wisp drink,” you said with a grin. The ‘Will-o-wisp’ was the citrus/lime/lemon monster drink you had twice so far. Given the magical balls of light which float and glowed in it, it was a suitable name. You heard Grillby was even going to put it on the permanent menu, a monster drink for humans who wanted something not too extreme.

“Of course, no cost for it given how you inspired me to come up with it. Your friend here can have one free as well if he’d like?”

“Awesome, can’t wait to taste it. I’ll also have a burger and fries,” Brian said with a grin, appearing more at ease with the monster made of magical flames. Grillby gave a nod before walking away.

“Fair warning, your tongue may start glowing afterwards,” you said cheekily, getting a snort from Brian. From there the date went smoothly, small talk flowing with ease. You both received drinks and food, going for the drinks first of course. You could see Brian’s eyes light up as he had a combination of flavors explode in his mouth.

“Wow this is the best! Hey how many drinks do you count on the menu over there? The one hanging on the wall?”

“Oh I’d say ten,” you said as you turned and studied it. A chalk board naming any drink a human could have, the names going from Dragon’s Tongue to Bunny Hop. You turned back to Brian who was giving you a wink as he took another swallow of his drink. He made a sound of pleasure as he put the glass down.

“We definitely need to try drinks like this. Maybe next time we can try one of those others?”

“Um maybe,” you said, nervously shifting in your seat. You weren’t crazy about trying some of those monster drinks, the contents so strong the person practically lost control of their senses. Also there was the fact Grillby would probably charge you for them. You had a feeling the Will-o-wisp was an exception he’d make free for you. It didn’t mean he’d make every monster drink free and most of those drinks were priced in the hundreds.

“I can’t wait, I bet they’re just as awesome,” Brian said before taking a final gulp of the Will-o-wisp. You didn’t voice your concerns, it could potentially ruin the date. Best to wait and just see how things go when you came here again.

“I swear kid, you have the worst luck,” Grillby muttered as he watched the two exit the bar. He liked (Y/N), he was a good kid with a good soul. He just always seemed to attract the wrong people. First Red who humiliated him in this very bar. Now the human named ‘Brian’ who came here with ill intents.

Your date easily distracted you, your face totally turned when he quickly pulled out an eyedropper and extracted a sample of the Will-o-wisp. Grillby saw the move though, eyes always sharp when it came to unfamiliar customers. The rules at the bar were clear, written right above the menu, all humans had to finish their monster drink here and take nothing with them.

It was decided by the royal family a while ago to not share secrets on how monster food and drink were made. But oh how humans were stubborn, willing to steal and swipe what they could. Try with their science to identify the secrets of monster food and drink.

Normally he’d walk right over with his fire blazing hot, demanding the eyedropper. But you already suffered a couple of depressing moments at his bar. Make a third one and you’d probably never step foot here again. So he let the human get away with his prize… at least for now. Once he was sure you two had driven off, he pulled a phone out from under the counter. It took only a minute to dial the mansion where the skeletons stayed at.

“Hey it’s Grillby, I need to share something with you guys…”

Brian locked the front door behind him after walking into his house. A two-story house which was probably too big for him, but he liked the space and his job easily let him afford it. Speaking of his job, he was on his way to a promotion with the way things were going. 

He pulled out the eyedropper, contents flickering with light occasional. Walking to the kitchen, he quickly pulled a drawer and grabbed a small capped bottle. Uncapping it, he slowly dripped the contents of the eyedropper in the bottle with a grin. He was looking at his next pay raise.

It wasn’t as if he didn’t like (Y/N), you were a nice guy and a fun date. Definitely on the inexperience side, but that didn’t bother Brian. He could always get action on the side without you knowing. When you mentioned having monster drinks though and further showed you were friends with a monster, Brian couldn’t ignore the opportunity.

His company produced food supplements and a supplement based on monster magic would put them ahead of everyone else. He hadn’t dared yet say a word to his boss, not sure if his plan even had a hope of happening. Date someone with connections to monsters, get monster drinks, steal occasional samples. 

The plan sounded shaky at best. But here it was, the fruits of his labor in the palm of his hand. Now he just had to get this stuff to the lab guys asap.

Still holding the bottle, he hastily pulled out his phone from his pocket. Palm sweating as he dialed his boss. The ring tone echoed in Brian’s ear until he finally heard a click.

“Yeah?”

“Hey it’s- whoah!”

The phone didn’t just slip out of his hand, it felt ripped away from him. He heard a slapping sound behind him, hand clutching for a phone no longer there. The phone beeped as it was turned off, sound coming ten feet behind him. Brian swallowed slowly, turning as his heartbeat picked up. 

It was the skeleton again, the one he met at the bar. Except this time there were no lights in his sockets, just pitch blackness. There shouldn’t be so much blackness in those sockets, the kitchen lights alone should have lit them. It was as if something inside the skull was eating away at the light. And the grin below the eyes, stretched so wide it looked on the side of crazy.

“Sorry But I’m Afraid We Need To Talk,” the skeleton said, pocketing the phone. What was his name again? He totally forgot, wasn’t even sure if it was given back at the bar. Wait, why did he give a fuck what its name was? It was in his home, in his home with just the two of them!

“You’re trespassing,” Brian said shakily, the words high-pitched with fear.

“**And You’re A Dirty Liar and Thief.”**

The words which somehow shook Brian’s soul came with a bony hand gesture, blue light surrounded the bottle in his hand and it flew to the skeleton. He grabbed mid-air, taking a second to study the contents.

“Not That I’m One To Talk, I Mean I Hurt (Y/N) As Well. But Golly, You Took It A Step Farther, You Planned To Betray Him From The Very Beginning,” the skeleton said as he pocketed the bottle. It was finally hitting Brian, there was a monster in front of him. A monster who was bigger than him and knew magic. Could probably break his neck with a gesture.

“Look I’ll just leave him alone ok? Say it won’t work out!” Brian said, raising his hands in a peaceful gesture. He thought for a second of grabbing a kitchen knife, then instantly discarded the idea. It was a skeleton for God’s sake, what was he going to stab for? It wasn’t like the thing had any vital organs.

“Oh Have A Guy Breakup With Him After Only Two Dates? No, No, He's Just Now Getting Some Confidence. It’s Important We Keep (Y/N) Happy, Not Let Him Get Depressed,” the skeleton said, the grin on his face stretching out even more, making Brian shudder.

“Right, I’m totally good with keeping (Y/N) happy. What can I do?” Brian asked, sweat breaking out on his neck. The skeleton stepped closer until its breath brushed against Brian’s face, the smell of mint might have been nice if not for the sockets filled with blackness, inches from his own eyes.

“I Thought You’d Never Ask.”


	15. More then one lesson

“KICK HARDER WARD!”

This was humiliating- no this was humiliation times ten, it was supposed to be a chance to introduce Brian by taking him to this beach outing with the others. At first you were afraid the monsters might not like him and give the wrong impression.

“HARDER,” barked Black, as he held your arms in the water, your feet kicking from behind.

Now you were terrified he’d take a video of this ridiculous scene and send it to all his friends before breaking up with you. And why were you in the water, kicking away while everyone else laid in the sand and relaxed? 

Well it started out well enough, you picked up Brian and met the others at the beach. Everyone met at the parking lot including Undyne and Alphys. The warrior wore a black one-piece swimsuit which went well with the navy colored scales glistening on her skin. Alphys had pink one which made her appeared rather cute, especially with the white inter tube around her waist.

All the skeletons wore t-shirts and swim-shorts, shades taped to their skulls. Yep it was all going fine right up until the chairs were setup on the beach. Then you made the mistake of mentioning not knowing how to swim when there was talk of going into the water.

Next thing you know, Black is dragging you in the cold water, salty currents beating against your body. His naked torso reminded you of how un-skeleton like they truly were. The so-called bones just too large, flexing and expanding with movement. You didn’t have a moment to enjoy the view though before Black pulled you, forcing your legs to float up. Then came ‘Lesson One’ of learning how to swim as good as Black the Terrible. Kicking as hard as you can while Black yelled in your face to kick harder.

_Please, please, don’t let him break up with me because of how stupid I look!_

“So I Assume You Understand How This Breakup Is Happening?”

God this skeleton scared Brian so much. It wasn’t just it’s appearance or the crazy magic. It was the way it could greet him all warmly and kindly while he was pretty sure it wanted to kill him. Even this conversation felt bizarre, the way it smiled and waved to the others while speaking with him. Both of them sat in beach chairs, a little further from the others. 

Blue had recruited two other skeletons on this crazy plan to do a ‘painless’ breakup for (Y/N). One had red eyes while the other had violet eyes. Both hinting at torturing him if he screwed this up. Part one of the plan already happened. As soon as (Y/N) mentioned the beach outing in a text, Brian practically begged to come along.

Now part two was for him to share secrets, totally fake and scary secrets which would send any guy running on the third date.

“Yeah I understand.”

“So Lets Go Over The List Again, First You Will Share…?”

“I have a drug addition, I use Ecstasy… a lot.”

“Not To Mention…”

“I have syphilis, probably got it from my ex-boyfriend before we broke up.”

“Who Broke Up With You Because…”

“I gambled all his money away, can’t keep away from a casino near my home.”

“EXCELLENT! You Appear Ready, Just Remember One Thing- You Don’t Hint In Anyway You Want To Breakup, (Y/N) Needs To Come To the Conclusion Himself.”

“I get it, I get it,” Brian muttered, shifting in the beach chair. Either (Y/N) would breakup with him because of all the red flags or because he sounded like a crazy nutcase making stuff up.

“ALRIGHT WARD, I SUPPOSE THAT’S ENOUGH.”

Your legs dropped to the sandy ground with a sigh. Seriously, why were you letting this guy order you around? You kind of knew the answer though, you never had anyone work this hard to help you improve. Parents never showed much faith in you, probably why you were always shy. Black’s determination to make you learn things felt nice… when your body didn’t feel like it was going to give out.

Your legs shook a little as you tried to stand, the large hands holding your arms keeping you steady.

“WARD I HOPE YOU ARE NOT GOING TO DO SOMETHING UNMANLY LIKE COLLAPSE FROM THAT LITTLE EXERCISE.”

“No promises,” you muttered, calf muscles on fire. The exercise sure didn’t feel ‘little’. As soon as the words were out your mouth, the large phalanges moved from your arms to your waist, picking you up with ease. You yelped as Black slung you over his shoulder, your groin now firmly resting on the broad shoulder as the skeleton walked with ease to the beach.

“Hey, I, let go!”

“WE CAN’T HAVE YOU TRIPPING OVER YOURSELF IN FRONT YOUR DATE, SUCH A DISPLAY WOULD BE EMBARRASSING WARD.”

“And this isn’t!?”

“OF COURSE NOT, YOUR DATE WILL INSTANTLY BE JEALOUS OF HOW A FINE SPECIMEN OF A MONSTER SUCH AS MYSELF ALLOWED YOU ON MY SHOULDER. HE’LL NO DOUBT SHOWER YOU WITH ATTENTION SO YOU DON’T STRAY FROM HIM,” Black said, as if it was obvious fact. The words accompanied a hand giving one of your butt cheeks a pat. Well to be honest a pat then an aggressive squeeze which caused you to gulp.

Before you could voice further objections, Black was already stepping onto the beach. As he walked up to Brian and Blue, you were suddenly glad your face was directed in the opposite direction. You really didn’t want to see your date’s expression at this display.

“BLUE, MY WARD NEEDS A SEAT.”

“OF COURSE, (Y/N) SHOULD HAVE A SEAT NEXT TO HIS DATE.”

You heard Blue get out of chair, then found yourself lifted up over the skeleton. With care, he placed you in the beach chair, a smirk on his mouth as you found your face only inches from his. There was a stroking of a finger against your leg as he let go. You were pretty sure you’d be turning red now if not for the cold water you were drenched in.

It took all your will power to turn your head slowly to Brian. You expected to be mocked, what you saw was annoyance as he glared at the two skeletons. Was he actually jealous? Maybe Black’s claim wasn’t as farfetched as it first sounded.

“So how about we go for a walk?” Brian asked, turning back to you with a smile. The smile itself appeared strained, but he was giving you an excuse to get away from potentially another swimming lesson.

“WHAT AN EXCELLENT IDEA, US TWO WILL GO JOIN THE OTHERS. DON’T GO TOO FAR,” Blue said with a grin. He was being supportive and you had a feeling of appreciation. He really was a good friend.

“We’ll be careful,” you replied eagerly, getting up. You walked side by side with Brian, the two skeletons walking in the opposite direction.

Your heartbeat picked up a little as you noticed the distance from the others.

_Come on, just do it, do it, do it!_

Before you could question yourself, you grabbed onto his hand. There was a slight stumble, but then your date continued walking.

“So um is this ok?” you asked, glancing at him. What you saw wasn’t encouraging. He might not have pulled away, but he wasn’t smiling about it either. There was a frown on his lips as he looked from you to the monsters in the distance.

“Yeah this is fine, so I need to tell you a couple of things,” Brian said with a sigh.

“Wow, so the serious conversations come on the third date,” you said with a grin. Only he wasn’t grinning back, still frowning. You dropped your own grin, letting go of the hand.

“Hey is something wrong?”

“I just need to get some stuff off my chest, so first off… I have syphilis.”

“I’m sorry, you whata?”

“Come on Paps! Move those legs!” Undyne roared as the two of them did another lap, jogging to the edge of the beach.

The rest of the monsters sat in their chairs, watching the two figures moving at rapid speed. Red had to hand it to Classic Paps, they really did need this vacation. Of course with his luck things couldn’t go smoothly. 

“BLACK WHAT YOU DID TO (Y/N) BACK THERE WASN’T APPROPRIATE.”

The relaxing atmosphere went tense as Alphys and Red turned to see Blue frowning, tapping his phalanges on the armrest. Black arched an eye, violet light glowing brighter.

“AND WHAT PRAY TELL IS INAPPROPRIATE ABOUT ME GIVING A SWIMMING LESSON TO MY WARD?”

“I’M NOT REFERRING TO THE SWIMMING LESSON, I’M REFERRING TO YOU SQUEEZING HIS ASS,” Blue said while squeezing the armrest, a cracked splintered the wood. Alphys fidgeted from her own chair while Red began sweating red drops on his head.

“Guys come on, let’s concentrate on the real threat here before we all start calling dibs on our human,” Red said, thinking of his own interactions with you. Jeez if Blue is getting angry over a little squeezing, imagining what he’d want to do if he knew Red stuck his tongue so deep down your throat he probably left a permanent aftertaste.

“O..our human? I thought y.. you guys didn’t even like him?” Alphys asked, gaze behind her glasses studying each skeleton. Now the atmosphere was getting even worst, from tense to plan depressive.

“WE… ARE REALIZING TIF- THE OTHER HUMAN, WASN’T THE BEST CHOICE FOR US TO GET CLOSE TO,” Black said, his body going slack as he stared out into the ocean.

“I.. I see,” Alphys said, raising her head with eyes locked onto your distant form.

“And that’s pretty much it,” Brian said with a huff as you stared dumbly at him.

“Wow, that’s um… I…”

“Yeah I know, don’t sound so great now do I?” Brian said with a sad smile.

_Don’t just stand there! Your date is gushing out his darkest secrets and all you’re doing is staring at him!_

“Do you need a hug?”

“What?” Brian asked dumbly, it definitely wasn’t a response he expected.

“You sound like you’ve had a really bad time, do you um want a hug?” you asked, raising your arms. First Brian appeared bewildered then frustrated, scratching at the back of his own head while clenching his teeth.

“I definitely had a bad time,” Brian muttered, you don’t think he was really talking to you. You took it as permission granted as you circled your arms around him. His body tensed at first then relaxed, a hand awkwardly patting your back. You stepped back, trying to get your head around everything he just said.

First a STD, then drug addiction, and finally even a gambling addition, talk about dropping multiple bombshells on a third date. If only you had more experience with this stuff then maybe you would know what to say. 

“I’m going to be honest, I um expected you to be angrier.”

“Oh trust me, if we had done it on the first date. I’d so be angry right now about the syphilis confession.”

You were rewarded a snort and a genuine smile, the first one you saw since you picked him up. It disappeared in a flash though.

“Fuck, I’m messing this up,” Brian said, once again more to himself then to you. You think you knew what to say. The speech already forming in your head as you opened your mouth.

“Look I’m not going to lie, some of the stuff you said did scare me. But at least you were honest with me. I don’t know if this will work, but I’m willing to see where-“

“-I have to go real quick, be right back!” Brian nearly shouted the words quickly before turning and running back towards the skeletons.

“Well I thought I was giving a good speech,” you muttered to yourself, watching him run back towards the others. You really needed to get him to the hospital to get rid of the syphilis though.

Brian was fucked. Not just because he blew the whole scaring you away, but because well.. now he REALLY didn’t want to hurt you. He wanted you to break up with his sorry ass because jeez you were a great guy. Seriously, he said all that crap and you still wanted to date him? Fear of death was now getting a good dose of guilt joined in.

As he approached the skeletons, he saw it was only the stout ones and the dinosaur sitting in the chairs. The other two were still running along the beach, didn’t they start doing that near an hour ago?

“I um need to talk to you guys,” Brian said nervously, glancing at the dinosaur monster. The… lady took the hint and got up.

“A.. actually I need to t.. talk to (Y/N) about the machine. B..be right back,” the dinosaur lady said as she walked past Brian.

“WELL HOW DID IT GO? DID HE GET SCARED? ANGRY? HIT YOU?” asked Black, sounding eager for an answer.

“He um… gave me a hug.”

There was a moment of silence, then Red slapped his own forehead with a hand. Black pinched his nasal holes and Blue pinched his imaginary eyebrows.

“Christ, it’s no wonder this kid attracts a-holes. He has no sense of self-preservation.”

“TALKING ABOUT THIS HUMAN OR YOURSELF?” Black asked cheekily.

“Not one to talk Black,” Red growled, red lights glowing brighter.

“ENOUGH! WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO SALVAGE THIS,” Blue said, rubbing his forehead.

“WE SHOULD HAVE HAD THE HUMAN BRING ECSTASY! HAVE HIM POP A COUPLE INTO HIS MOUTH IN FRONT OF MY WARD AND THIS WHOLE MESS WOULD BE OVER WITH,” Black grumbled, crossing his arms.

“I’m not taking ecstasy.”

“HUMAN, IF I SAY YOU DO IT, YOU’LL FUCKING PUMP A LOAD OF COCAINE INTO YOUR VEIN WITH A DIRTY SYRINGE!”

Brian swallowed hard, not seeing a hint of the monster joking as he growled the words. This was all appropriate in a silly way. After all if he was going to have a monster kill him, shouldn’t it be one with the Grim Reaper’s face?

“E.. excuse me (Y/N), you have a minute?”

You jerked out of your thoughts, seeing Alphys just ten feet away. Your mind had been so busy trying to think of what to say to Brian, you didn’t even notice her approach. 

“Oh hey Alphys, sure thing. How are you liking this vacation so far?” you asked with a smile. Had to be having a better time than he was. 

“O.. oh it’s nice, I always like seeing Undyne have some fun with Papyrus. But t.. there was something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Actually there was something I wanted to ask as well,” you said, recalling your own curiosity at her lack of presence on the fix-the-machine team.

“Oh! U.. uh you go first!’

“Ok, I hope I’m not being too nosy, but why were you not part of the team to work on repairing the machine? I mean the first time before eerrr someone made it blow up.”

“I.. think I can answer that after I ask my question. Have you noticed any… hard feelings when it came to T.. Tiffany after she and the others disappeared?”

Your mind instantly jumped to how Red cracked a stairway rail just from hearing her name. How no one in the mansion wanted to hear her name. Even when talking about the disappearances, it was as if everyone shied away from even acknowledging her existence.

“There’s definitely been some hard feelings. And keep in mind, while it wasn’t intentional, her actions led to a loss in the family,” you said, recalling how unstable Blue was before.

“…I did join the team at first. It was only for less then a week, before you came along but after T..Tiffany was introduced to everyone,” Alphys said, staring out into the ocean.

“S.. she seemed nice and she asked a lot of questions.”

“You mean about the machine?”

“N.. No… about monster souls and soul bonds,” Alphys said in near a whisper, hands resting on her innertube. The said hands began to fiddle with each other.

“A.. at first I thought it was just a interest in monster biology and culture. She was asking what soul bonds were to a monster. If a human could be soul bonded to a monster and if so, how. S.. she even asked if it was acceptable for a human to be soul bonded to more than one monster.”

_I’m not sure I like where this is going._

“T.. the day after I answered all her questions, she soul bonded with Sans. I.. it was a surprise, I mean they only knew each other for l.. little over a month. A.. and thinking back on it, all those questions j.. just didn’t seem so innocent anymore.”

Your mind was racing, you knew Tiffany was manipulative but could she really had been thinking that far ahead? Had she planned to be soul bonded to all the skeletons within days of meeting them?

“I.. quit the team a.. after that. Made up an excuse of a new project taking up my time.”

“You never let Sans know how she asked those questions?”

“I couldn’t u.. unless I implied she was manipulating him and it was obvious he was head over heels in l.. love with her. I.. mean have you seen her? She’s pretty and nice, I couldn’t see Sans believing me over her.”

She said the words with fingers playing against each other again. You knew where she was coming from, you were both geeks who didn’t exactly feel confident when compared to beautiful popular people. Alphys suddenly felt a lot more like a kindred spirit.

“Don’t sell yourself short, a lot of people take your opinion seriously. I sure did when it came to helping me,” you said, feeling the need to make her feel better. She gave you a smile, cheeks turning red.

“I j.. just wanted to let you know since you’re working on bringing them back. Someone should know w.. what she was up to.”

“I think at least a couple of skeletons are realizing they were being manipulated,” you said with a sigh, thinking of the lie she told Classic Paps. Of how she claimed you didn’t want to be his friend.

“W.. well I feel better knowing your there. Good meeting you!” Alphys said, offering her hand with another smile. You smiled back, shaking the scaly hand. As she walked off, you saw your date running back.

Brian had no idea what he was going to say when he ran up to you, why? Because the knuckle-heads he left behind couldn’t think of a way to end your sympathy response on his made-up imaginary yet terrible life. Maybe he should just say he thinks he might be straight. Given how many straight people used the ‘I think I might be gay’ to get out of a messy relationship, wasn’t it only fair he got to use the reverse excuse?

“Hey everything good?” Brian asked, glancing back at the dinosaur lady he just passed.

“Yeah, why did you go run over to the guys? I mean I’m glad, I want you to get to know them better. Just a little weird how you did it right in the middle of our talk.”

“Oh I um just needed a breather from all this serious stuff. What were you speaking to the lady about?” Brian asked, hoping his attempt at subject change wasn’t too obvious.

“We were talking about someone. I didn’t bring her up before because well… it was a bit of a sore spot. There’s this girl who pretty much had all the skeletons wrapped around her finger. And it led to some of them being hurt, emotionally at least.”

“Serves them right,” Brian said, words leaving mouth before brain caught up. He saw you frown, crossing your arms.

“Why would you say that? You don’t even know all the details.”

It was literally the first time Brian could recall you being annoyed with him and he realized he might be on to something here.

“They didn’t really impress me when I was chatting with them. Honestly I think someone could take them down a peg or two for their own good,” Brian said, meaning every word. Now you went from frowning to also wrinkled forehead. Dear God, after all those lies, was the blatant truth actually going to get him the breakup he needed?

“I’ll admit a lot of them deserved some karma coming back to slap them. But one of them… lost someone important because of her. No one deserves that,” you said, looking back at the ocean. Wait, the skeleton he met first said he lost someone because they were killed. The skeleton who was putting him through this torture.

“Still sticking with my original opinion. Said monster had it coming,” Brian said, crossing his own arms.

“Dude!”

“Hmm?”

“That is.. don’t go saying people deserve to lose someone ok? It’s just…”

“Honest truth?”

“No it’s not!”

It was the first time you yelled at him, hands clenching in fists. You were almost there, he just had to push you a little more.

“Look maybe losing someone will be a good thing for them? Maybe next time they won’t be such a sucker for-“

“-I think you need to go,” you interrupted, not looking at his face. He did it, he got you to breakup with him. Was it a painless breakup for you? Brian wasn’t sure, but at least you wouldn’t look back at this and think you missed out on dating a great guy. Because he definitely was not a great guy. If nothing else, he learned that much from all this. He was going to need to do some serious soul searching before he hit the dating scene again.

“Fine by me, let me go grab my stuff and I’ll call a uber,” Brian said with a wave. Best to get out of here before God forbid you changed your mind. You didn’t grace him with a good-bye, keeping your eyes on the ocean. Dinosaur lady had joined fish lady and tall skeleton to make a sandcastle. The three knuckle-heads lifted up their faces, eyes widening as he grabbed his stuff.

“Well good news guys, he told me to beat it. He wants me gone pronto,” Brian said, as he began stuffing his towel and sunscreen into a bag.

“DID YOU TELL HIM YOU WANTED COCAINE?”

“Black don’t be stupid, he probably mentioned erection disfunction.”

“Nope, hey skeleton didn’t you tell me someone close to you was killed?” Brian asked slinging the bag over his shoulder. All three skeletons tensed up, the eye lights disappearing in all their skulls to show hollow sockets. The one he aimed the question at was literally shaking in his chair.

“Watch it kid…”

“Just figured I should let you know what finally got him to snap. I trash talked about how you got what you deserved. It wasn’t all those stupid lies which got him to breakup with me. It was wanting to defend you and not hear me insult you,” Brian said, words instantly led to the skeleton no longer shaking. The cyan lights returned as he stared at Brian with jaw dropping. He was being stupid and about to say something stupid. But he wanted to give this tormentor a good slap across the face before leaving.

“Didn’t you say you hurt him in the past? Kind of funny, wonder how much he’d care about you if he knew what a manipulative bastard you are.”

It was worth the risk of all three jumping on him and tearing him to pieces to see pain on the monster’s face. Brian turned and walked away. He promised himself he’d work on being a better person, but it didn’t need to be today. He didn’t hear the words the skeleton spoke softly afterwards.

“Guys I Need Some Alone Time With (Y/N) On The Way Back Home.”


	16. Good Memories & Pissed Off Memories

You watched Blue turn the wheel, pulling onto a road leading upward. When everyone was ready to go, Blue asked if he could drive and take you somewhere. It wasn’t with his usual cheer and he spoke softly. You figured Brian may have said something to upset the skeleton, given the crap you heard from the guy today.

Then as the drive went on in awkward silence, you knew it had to be something else. He wouldn’t normally look this… solemn just because Brian said something mean spirited. To try to distract yourself from his behavior, you stared outside the car window. There was a cliff near the beach, you noticed it as Black dragged you into the water. Seeing how the road was moving upward, trees given way to rocks and stone, you realized Blue was driving you to the top of it. You saw words sprayed painted on a rock- ‘Makeout Point’.

“Um Blue did you notice-“

“-YES (Y/N) I SAW THE ROCK, DON’T WORRY, I’M NOT TAKING YOU THERE FOR KISSING,” Blue said with a chuckle, giving a real smile for the first time. You smiled as well, happy to see his spirits lifting.

“Naw, I know I’m safe. If it was Red driving then I’d be worried,” you said, before slapping a hand over your own mouth.

“OH RREEAALLLYYYY, YOU DON’T SAY,” Blue said nonchalantly even though his eyes glowed brighter.

“Well I um…”

“(Y/N) PLEASE DON’T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO WATCH YOUR WORDS WITH ME WHEN SPEAKING ABOUT THE OTHERS. I KNOW I NEED TO LET YOU- OH GOOD HERE WE ARE!”

Blue pulled the car into a small parking lot which was empty. Maybe it would get more crowded when it turned dark considering the nickname you just saw. It was getting a little infuriating how quite Blue was as he exited the car and motioned you to follow him with a smile. This was normally someone who would talk a mile a minute about fun plans for a full week before said fun plans happened. It was always Stretch who kept a quite air of being mysterious, not him.

_But Stretch isn’t around anymore._

The thought didn’t exactly make you depressed, you barely knew him. But it did make you think of how different Blue might become because of the skeleton’s absence. At least all this was a good distraction from realizing you’d never see Brian again. You knew you reached that decision when telling him to leave. Stretch’s death may not have affected you, but Blue would forever be changed because of it. No one should be told they deserved to lose someone they loved. 

You found yourself seating next to Blue on a bench, perfect spot for a beautiful view of the ocean. You could even see the beach you were at today to the left, white sand stretching far out.

“Blue I’m going to be honest, you’re scaring me a little. You’re not normally this quite.”

“MY APOLOGIES, BUT DO YOU LIKE THE VIEW OF THIS PLACE,” Blue asked, a hand falling on yours and giving it a squeeze. You didn’t pull away, friends could hold hands right? It wasn’t a big deal. The fingers were so much larger than yours, but the phalanges squeezed your own fingers gently.

“Yeah, it’s nice,” you said, taking a deep breath of the ocean air as you watched the blue water for a minute. The said minute, turned into five, then turned into ten. Finally Blue let go of your hand, arm laying onto the side of the bench as he turned to you. The position made him attractive somehow, but you were trying your best to ignore it.

“RIGHT, SO SORRY FOR DRAGGING YOU ALL THE WAY UP HERE. I KNOW IT WAS SELFISH, BUT I REALLY WANTED ONE MORE HAPPY MEMORY.”

“One more happy memory?”

“Yes, One More Before You Decide You Want Nothing To Do With Me,” Blue said softly, eyes going dim. You stared at him, the change in voice and expression so quick it threw you. It was like you were suddenly next to someone else. The pause from your surprise didn’t last long though.

“Brian Was Using You.”

A seagull cried out nearby right after the words, you jumped a little, becoming unnerved by how intense Blue’s stare had become.

“I.. I’m sorry, what do you mean by that?”

“He Wanted Samples Of Monster Drinks And Food For His Company. He Stole A Sample When You Took Him To Grillby’s. Grillby Called The Mansion, I Answered And Confronted Brian. I Learned What He Did.”

“I don’t understand, if what you said was true then you’d never let him come with us to- OH YOU ASS HOLE!”

You were on your feet shouting the words before you knew it because suddenly a lot of things were making sense. All those stupid confessions Brian made. The way he acted like a jerk and was practically trying to get you to dislike him. It was all making sense and God you really wish it didn’t.

Blue flinched, but otherwise simply sat there staring at you. The gaze from lights flickering in his socket unnerving.

“H.. how could you do that?! Why didn’t you just tell me the truth!?”

“Because I Thought I Was Protecting You. I Thought I Knew The Best Way To End It So You Wouldn’t Be Hurt.”

“So why are you telling me now huh? Looks like your plan worked perfectly! Did a great job of tricking me and making me realize I’m an idiot,” you said, realizing tears were on your cheeks. Of course you should have known it was all too good to be true. Brian being interested in you for you? God what a joke you are. He fooled you with his dates and even your whole fucking breakup with him was you being fooled.

“Have You Ever Gotten Someone You Loved Killed?”

“No, but apparently it’s going to be impossible for me to find love,” you said, realizing you weren’t even being sarcastic.

“You Already Have Love, You Have Two Skeletons Who Love You Dearly. You’re Going To Go On A Outing With Them,” Blue said with a soft smile. The images of your Papyrus and Sans popped in your head and that alone caused the swelling hurt to stop. You weren’t alone and you had people who truly cared for you. You would get through this. 

Blue really didn’t look like he fit in that category though. Was all this supposed to be an apology? Because so far he hadn’t once said the word ‘sorry’. And he appeared worn and sad, all that energy he used to always have gone.

“I Did Get Someone I Love Killed. You’ve Never Been Idiot, The Only Idiot Here Is Me. Ever Since That Day I’ve Been Trying To Grab Onto You, Not Lose You Even Though I Had No Right To Keep You,” Blue said, getting up. He walked towards you, you found yourself taking a couple of steps back. His strides were so much bigger than yours though. Those large hands landed on your shoulders, keeping you in place. You could smell his mint breath as his flickering gaze continued to watch you. 

“I’m Going To Ask You Something Important,” Blue said, giving your shoulders a squeeze. You felt a rising panic because you already knew what he was going to ask. The therapy didn’t work, he still obsessed over you. You should have left when you had the chance. Now here he took you to a romantic site, still delusional as ever. 

_Do you love me? Because I love you with all my heart. Will you please be my boyfriend? Can we have sex right here and now to souldbond-_

“What Do You Want (Y/N)?”

You stared at him, trying to figure out what he was asking. Was he asking if you still wanted Brian, did this even have anything to do with Brian?

“You’re Helping With The Machine Because We Want Our Family Back. Even Because S.. She Has Family Which Wants Her Back. But What Are You Going To Do After That? What Do You Truly Want When The Machine Is Working, You Bring Back Everyone, And Show Just How Great You Are?”

“I… um…”

Your brain switched from one memory to the other. Classic Paps barely speaking to you, then wanting you to join them at the beach. Black ordering you to do tasks then forcing candy down your mouth even though his covered in cracks. Red not giving a damn about your feelings and now looking at you with want. Finally Blue- no you weren’t going there.

Your Sans and Papyrus would be gone. You would be stuck with these guys and the others. How were you supposed to answer the question when the future was so unpredictable? Even now with the anger, maybe hate, you see Tiffany get- you could see her convince them all to be with her again. And it wasn’t like you could stop it. You couldn’t even get one guy to sincerely want to date you.

“I don’t know.”

You felt stupid saying it, like you should be able to say something else. Blue was studying you a minute before letting go of your shoulders with a nod. Hands going into his jacket pockets as he cocked his head to the side.

“Well Please Think About The Question (Y/N) Because I Finally Figured Something Out. And I’m Sorry It Took So Long For Me To Do So,” Blue said with a sigh.

“What did you figure out?”

“THAT ONLY YOU KNOW WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY SILLY,” Blue said with a wink. 

“Ok, I’ll um definitely think about it,” you said, finding it hard to look at his face. You basically just found out he betrayed your trust. He also though asked an important question, something you really should have thought about before now.

“LET’S TRY A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT QUESTION. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU WANT FROM ME SPECIFICALLY? ANYTHING I CAN DO? OR ANY QUESTION YOU HAVE FOR ME?”

“What did the letter say to make you sleep with her?”

You really needed a moment to get your brain in order. That wasn’t a question you ever planned to ask. Oh it was always there in the back of your mind after Red told you about the letter. After realizing it had something to do with him having sex with Tiffany and forming a soulbond.

“Wait you don’t have to answer that. I shouldn’t have asked,” you said, finding yourself near panicking. The skeleton didn’t look nearly as freaked out as you were afraid he’d be though. He just appeared a little sadder, shoulders slumping.

“It’s Fine, I Didn’t Actually Tell Anyone, Not Even Bob My Therapist. But I’m Fine With Telling You,” Blue said, taking a seat on the bench. You followed suite, feeling stiff as a board regardless of the relaxing scenery.

“A Lot Of It Was Just Nonesense About How She Secretly Always Had Feelings For Me. How She Admired And Valued Me As Much As My Brother And- Well A Lot Of Stupid Stuff Which I Now Know Is Made-up. Ironically The One Thing That Made Me Decide To Accept Her… Invitation Was Something Actually True.”

You didn’t say anything during his pause. His words acting as a good distraction from your own inner thoughts. 

“It Was Near The End Of The Love Letter. She Said If I Was Soulbonded With Her, We’d All Have A Link Through Her To Be Together Forever. What She Said Made Sense, If All Eight Of Us Were Soulbonded To Her, We’d Never Go Our Separate Ways.”

“But you would if you were with me,” you said, turning to stare at the ocean again. 

“I Know I Was Terrible At Showing Commitment, But I Did Think About Soulbonding With You. And I Realized There Was A Good Chance Me And My Brother Might Go Separate Ways In Life If That Happened.”

“I… I guess I can unders-“

The slap on your head hurt just a tad, wasn’t too hard. But still you were definitely not in the mood to be hit right now. You hissed in pain turning to Blue who didn’t appear a bit apologetic as he pulled his bony hand back.

“What the hell!”

“SORRY, BUT YOU WERE ABOUT TO SAY SOMETHING STUPID LIKE WHAT I DID TO YOU WAS FINE.”

“I was not! I mean the way you went about it was shitty. You could have at least told me your reasons before fucking her,” you near shouted. The stupid skeleton was actually smiling as you raised your voice. Which in turn was only making you angrier.

“THERE’S A LOT OF THINGS I SHOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY, I SHOULD HAVE RESPECTED YOU. EVEN NOW I STILL DIDN’T SHOW YOU RESPECT YOU DESERVED. SO NOW THAT YOU KNOW EVERYTHING, DO YOU… do you hate me?”

The smile was gone now and Blue was scratching at a plank on the bench with a single finger. Eyes totally focused on the plank instead of you when he asked the question. You took a deep breath, finding simply one thing to be true about all this. It was just all plain not fair. Not fair to unload all this on you. Not fair to ask what you wanted when you had no clue. And definitely not fair to ask whether you hated his guts, especially after he just slapped your head.

“I don’t hate you, but I think I can say for certain I don’t trust you,” you said, trying to keep your answer simple. Honestly you didn’t want to think too much about how you felt about Blue. Today was a combination of betrayal with baring soul confessions. You needed some space to understand where you and Blue stood with each other.

The skeleton smiled again, more cheerful then you expected. He stood and stretched, then put both hands on his hips. It was a classic The Magnificent Blue pose you haven’t seen in a long time.

“WELL IT APPEARS I NOW HAVE A CHALLENGE OF EARNING YOUR TRUST BACK! THE GREAT BLUE WILL FACE THIS CHALLENGE HEAD ON. JUST KNOW I’LL DO ANYTHING ASKED IN ORDER TO SHOW I’M YOUR FRIEND,” Blue said, pose in place as his smile appeared to get wider. You stared at him for a second and found yourself smiling too as you shook your head. 

“You really do utterly confuse me, you know that right,” you said, getting up and stretching as well. Dear God, he was acting exactly like old Blue. And you had no idea if that was a good or bad thing. As long as he went to therapy though, you weren’t going to worry about it. You wanted to get to your own Sans and Papyrus soon though, where you’ll try to forget this day through cuddles and hot chocolate.

Blue handed you the keys and the drive back was quiet. So much was said and both of you had a lot to think about.

The two of you reached the mansion last, seeing Classic Paps speaking with a middle-aged man dressed in a business suit near the front door. There was something familiar about him with his raven dark hair and face. You could tell it wasn’t a pleasant conversation as the two of you approached, Classic Pap’s shoulders were tense and arms crossed. Everything about his body said he was agitated.

“PLEASE HUMAN, AS THE AMBASSADOR THEMSELVES SAID, WE WILL UPDATE YOU IF WE MAKE ANY NEW PROGRESS.”

“Please I just want to speak with the assistant fixing the machine. It’s been over two months since I saw my daughter.”

Blue let’s out a hissing breath as the words hit both of you.

_This is Tiffany’s father._

The man appeared to realize their presence only a second later because he turned and smiled when he saw both of you. You only saw him take one step before a wall of monster was blocking your way. Blue didn’t speak a word, but you could see the hands curling up into fists. One of your own hands latched onto his forearm, gently rubbing and squeezing it. 

You were trying to convey a message with the touch because your tongue was stuck in your mouth. You didn’t have the words to try to explain everything was ok, not to get angry, please relax. One hand went over yours and gave a gentle squeeze, the large body in front of you losing some of its tension.

“BLUE PERHAPS YOU SHOULD GO INSIDE. MR. LEVINE WOULD LIKE A MOMENT TO SPEAK WITH (Y/N). I’LL BE HERE TO MAKE SURE IT ALL GOES SMOOTHLY.”

You took a peek from behind Blue. You couldn’t see what expression Blue was giving, but the older man had gone a shade paler and Classic Paps was frowning with forehead wrinkled up.

“(Y/N), What Do You Want?”

_Seriously this question agai- oh wait he means with this._

“I’m good with speaking with Mr. Levine. I’ll be fine with Classic Paps here Blue. We’ve both had kind of a stressful day. Why don’t you go inside and try to relax,” you said, giving his back a pat with the other hand. The large skull turned and his face almost appeared normal except for how fake the smile looked.

“OF COURSE (Y/N), BUT I’LL JUST BE IN THE LIVING ROOM IF YOU NEED ME. ONLY A SHOUT AWAY,” Blue said, letting go of your hand. Then he turned and walked to the front door while Mr. Levine took a couple of steps to the right, practically using Classic Paps as a barrier. Everyone appeared to relax slightly when they heard the door close. 

“Good day Mr. Levine,” you said as you walked up to the two. You should have known Tiffany’s last name really wasn’t ‘Loves’. Looks like she had changed it to try to make herself sound more charming.

“Yes hello, the monster there certainly appeared to not like me. I hope I didn’t offend him in anyway,” Mr. Levine said, pulling at his collar.

“NOT AT ALL, THE SUBJECT OF YOUR DAUGHTER IS SIMPLY A SORE SPOT FOR HIM. GIVEN HOW SHE INADVERTANTLY KILLED HIS BROTHER WHEN DESTROYING THE MACHINE,” Classic Paps said nonchalantly. Mr. Levine was back to turning pale, but you were too busy dropping your jaw. You weren’t sure if what he said constituted rude since it was the truth, but it sure was a lot of blunt uncomfortable truth. This was the guy who once lectured Edge on being nicer with Amazon online reviews. 

“Yes, well I can see how my presence isn’t welcomed here,” the man said, shoulders drooping. You began to feel bad for him. And you were remembering what Frisk said about the man, he wasn’t a bad person as far as they could tell.

“Mr. Levine was there anything you want to ask about? I mean if you want to know the specifics on what happened to your daughter and how we’re trying to get her back, it’s a bit complicated. Could take me a couple of hours trying to explain the quantum physics.”

“Oh no no, I’m a business man, wouldn’t have a clue what you were saying if you went into the science about it. I just… I’m a little worried about how much effort will be taken to get her back. I mean she’s my little girl, but deep down I know she has a bit of a selfish nature.”

You exchanged glances with Classic Paps whose face was unreadable.

“It’s because of her mother I know, I stay with her for the sake of the kids like our son whose only ten. But I know she was a dark influence on her. I’m sure Tiffany already created a lot of resentment, but I just need to know you’ll try to get her back regardless of her flaws,” Mr. Levine said, eyes watering slightly. You took a deep breath, then awkwardly patted the man’s shoulder.

“Mr. Levine, I promise you I’ll try everything I can to get her back to you alive.”


	17. Cider and Secrets

“I’M GOING TO TAKE SUCH GOOD CARE OF YOU LITTLE TURTLE!”

“Paps that’s half a green apple dressed up like a turtle. You’re supposed to eat it.”

“(Y/N) HOW COULD YOU SUGGEST I EAT MY NEWLY ACQUIRED PET!”

“It’s a fruit, honest! Just look under it!”

“LOOK UNDER MY PET AT HIS YOU KNOW WHATS!? WE’VE JUST MET, IT WOULD BE UNBECOMING!”

You know Papyrus was messing with you… at least you hope he knew that carved green apple wasn’t a real animal. Sans wasn’t saying a word, just chuckling as the three of you stood at the Farmers Market. Today was an outing which you knew would be more enjoyable. Papyrus was always trying to learn new recipes and create new foods. So this was the idea you gave them, both jumping at it.

You all came early in the morning to avoid the larger crowd, monsters were familiar to people but your best friends weren’t crazy about crowds or stares. The first stand you came upon sold apples and at the counter there were cut green apples using green grapes to make the fruits look like adorable green turtles. Sans tossed a five dollar bill onto the counter before grabbing one and tossing it into his mouth. Papyrus gave a horrifying stare as he clutched his own fake turtle.

“SANS HOW COULD YOU!?”

“Hey bro I’m just trying out some of this stuff. You know, get out of my _shell_.”

“UGH AND NOW YOU INFECT MY PET WITH PUNS!”

“Let’s move on,” you said with a grin, seeing the girl behind the counter also smiling. Your friends might look scary, but once they got into their banter most people actually found them amusing.

The next stand had even more adorable food. Cauliflower which looked like sheep thanks to a mushroom being used as a head and celery sticks as legs. With much heartfelt apologies Papyrus ate his pet so he had room for his new pet sheep. The whole morning went that way, trying samples of foods, weird shaped foods, and sometimes buy ingredients for cooking later. 

As the crowd got larger and you noticed Sans clenching his hands a couple of times, you called it a day and headed to a nearby café. They had homemade cider all three of you tried, relaxing during the day. You found yourself staring at the amber liquid, swirling it as your mind wandered.

“You ok kid?”

You jerked out of your thoughts, looking up at Sans, the red eye studying you with concern. Papyrus was giving you the same look as he sipped his drink.

“I yeah… Tiffany’s dad showed up at the mansion. I think I said something stupid. I practically promised I’d get her back for him, but I’m kind of hitting a roadblock when it comes to figuring out how to do it. I mean I still don’t know the pattern as to why the machine picked those four to take.”

Sans simply stared at you for a full minute then took a giant chug of his cider, unlike the comforting sips he had before. When the glass mug was empty, he slammed it onto the table, nearly breaking the glass. Both you and Papyrus jumped a little startled, staring at Sans. The stout skeleton gave a belch before going slack in his chair and staring at the sky.

You realized then just how stupid you were being. Of course your friends didn’t want to hear about Tiffany on a outing when you were supposed to have fun.

“Hey Sans, just ignore me ok? I mean we can talk about something-“

“-I know the pattern,” Sans interrupted, hand reaching up to pull at his hole. You quickly grabbed the arm, concern of him hurting himself making you ignore the words he said. Then as you pulled his arm towards you and grabbed his hand, your eyes widen as finally your brain caught onto what was said. San’s red eye moved from looking up towards you. A smirk coming onto his fanged mouth as his large hand squeezed yours.

“Sorry kid, hope I didn’t one up ya by solving it first.”

“Sans that’s amazing! I mean you weren’t even part of the team to fix the machine and you figured it out?”

“OF COURSE, SANS IS THE BEST THERE IS, WELL SECOND PLACE TO ME OF COURSE,” Papyrus said with a proud grin from his jagged teeth.

“Easy on the compliments guys, in all fairness I overheard some very private information which you probably would never have learned about. Monsters don’t like talking about their soul bonds much, it’s a sensitive topic.”

“What does the soul bonds with Tiffany have to do with this?” you asked, feeling slightly frustrated. If that was the key to the pattern then no wonder you were clueless. You barely knew a thing about soul bonds.

“It’s simple really, with each pair of brothers the machine pulled the one brother who had the strongest soul bond link. Classic San’s soul bond was stronger than Classic Paps. Edge’s soul bond was stronger than Reds. And Mutt’s soul bond was stronger than Blacks. The only exception was with the swap brothers, Stretch was toast and Blue’s soul bond was pretty weak.”

“So Tiffany got pulled into the void because she was closest to the machine, then a strain was put onto the soul bonds as they were used to try to drag the other skeletons in. For those with weaker ones, the soul bonds just snapped. For those soul bonds strong enough though… it caused them to get pulled with her.”

You had the answer. This was the last piece of the puzzle, with it you knew you could get the others back. There was just one last question you had. Sans though already answered, seeing it in your eyes.

“I know I could have told you sooner kid, but I was scared for you. I didn’t want us getting those ass holes back until we knew for sure you’d be ok,” Sans said, hand squeezing yours even tighter. Papyrus gave his own nod, reaching for your other hand and squeezing it. The show of wanting to protect you made you a little misty eyed.

_“(Y/N), What Do You Want?”_

You had an answer now. Maybe not a whole answer, but at least part of one.

“I HAVE TO ADMIT I WAS ALSO AFRAID, BUT WORRY NOT! WHEN YOU DO BRING THEM BACK, ME AND MY BROTHER WILL BE HERE TO MAKE SURE YOU’RE SAFE!”

“Thanks guys, but that’s not happening.”

The words were accompanied with you pulling your hands back and getting up. You refused to let your voice waiver as you spoke.

“We’re now putting project Battering Ram into motion. Because getting you guys home to rescue your kingdom takes priority. The others can wait until then.”

What did you want? The answer was simple- you wanted to help your friends.

“Right, say it back to me again.”

“Aw come on kid, we said it to ya twice already.”

“NOW SANS OUR HUMAN IS JUST WORRIED. LET’S HUMOR HIM.”

“Jeez ok fine, I take the Battering Ram device, put it around five feet in front of the barrier and turn the knob a quarter way right, then hit the red button.”

“And then?”

“Do the moonwalk.”

“SANS!”

“Sans!”

“Heh just kidding, I make sure to get at least a hundred feet away from it before the ten-minute timer runs out.”

“And when it destroys the barrier, what do you do then?

“I go to the county government center with all this crazy paperwork you made me fill out, asking for asylum for myself and the other monsters. Also contact those non-profit humanitarian groups you listed about what us monsters need help with.”

“And make sure to wear clothing every where and cover your face. You won’t be able to just short cut around town since you haven’t been there before.”

“I STILL DON’T SEE WHY I CAN’T BE THE ONE TO DELIVER THE PAPERS.”

“I can still short cut back to the mountain bro if things look bad.”

“YES BUT I’M SO MUCH BETTER AT SPEAKING WITH PEOPLE.”

“It’s ok bro, I’ll _ink_ through it.”

“DON’T YOU DARE START OFF THE ASYLUM REQUEST WITH A PUN! YOU’LL START ANOTHER WAR!”

“So let’s talk about the worst case scenario,” you said, glancing at the newly built machine. The three of you were in the basement, a backpack being carried by Sans with all the things they would need. You were half excited and half scared. Excited that all the work you’ve been putting into this was finally going to come to fruition. Scared because you wouldn’t be there to help Sans and Papyrus when they got there. Scared of how you would be here… without them. Maybe it was fairer to say you were mostly just scared.

“If the Battering Ram device doesn’t break the barrier, you guys use the notes I gave you to fix your own machine in San’s basement. Then we can use it to communicate and deliver stuff to each other. Figure out why my invention didn’t work,” you said. You felt a little thrill at saying ‘my invention’. Holy crap, you made an invention, a barrier breaking bad ass invention. At least you hoped to God it worked and breaks the barrier.

The two skeletons exchanged a look you couldn’t interpret before turning back and nodding.

“So I guess this is um good bye,” you said, voice shaky at the end of the words. You internally cursed at not sounding more confident. The fear was still there and you must have been doing a lousy job of hiding it because you suddenly found two giant bodies lifting you up and hugging you. Sans had his big arms around your waist and Papyrus had his thinner ones circling your torso.

The three of you simply stayed like that for a few minutes, your whole body cocooned in warmth with Sans affectionately rubbing your shoulder with his cheek. Papyrus doing the same with his chin on your head.

“Are You Sure You Don’t Want To Come To Our World? Once We Have The Barrier Down,” Papyrus whispered the question as he squeezed you against his large chest.

“Yeah I’m sure,” you said, giving his shoulder a pat. You had more time to think about Blue’s question, to think about what you wanted to do going forward. And an idea was forming. You already checked with the Ambassador about it and they were all for the half-baked plan you came up with.

“Just remember kid, you can always change your mind. We’ll only be one dimensional jump away if you need us,” Sans whispered in your ear, before nuzzling you again. This time on your bare neck, causing you to blush. The feel of his warm breath and cheek sliding along your flesh felt nice. You heard a chuckle from the stouter skeleton as the two let go. Papyrus was rolling eyes while Sans looked smug.

“Right,” you said with a cough, pointing at a spot in front of the machine.

“Stand over there and let’s get started,” you said, turning to the controls on the wall. All it took was a pressing of three buttons. It wasn’t like in the movies, there was no hole in space and time appearing with a dozen lights. There was simply a flash of white light, like a camera going off in the dark. Then they weren’t there. You stared at the empty spot for a minute, finding it hard to believe they were gone simply because of how unimpressive the exit was. Then you took a deep breath and squared your shoulders, turning to the exit.

“I can do this,” you said to yourself, trying your best to stay determined.

You found yourself in the kitchen doorway, watching Classic Paps cooking beef tacos for tonight. You hadn’t seen tacos cooked in quite a while now that you thought about it. Blue used to insist on cooking it weekly before everything fell apart. Maybe Classic Paps was finally noticing and this was his way of reminding Blue about his favorite food. 

You stood there just watching him as he seasoned the beef on the skillet, shredding cheddar cheese, and expertly chopped vegetables. He was definitely a different monster from the one who burnt pasta and smashed tomatoes. Finally Classic Paps caught on to you watching, smile in place. The forehead though wrinkled slightly in concern.

“AH (Y/N), HOW GOES YOUR DAY?”

“Great I guess,” you said, and winced when you realized how weird you were acting. You had basically been staring at him for over ten minutes creepily. And even your words sounded strange to you, like you weren’t even sure what you should say to a simple question.

“(Y/N) IS SOMETHING WRONG?” Classic Paps asked, removing the apron to show a shirt with the words ‘Don’t Hate Me Because I Can’t Sunburn’. The words made you smile and Classic Paps own smile looked more genuine as he noticed your reaction.

“LIKE IT (Y/N)? I’M TRYING TO BROADEN MY WARDROBE. HUMANS APPEAR TO FIND ME MORE APPROACHABLE WHEN I WEAR THIS TYPE OF CLOTHING.”

“It’s awesome Paps,” you said, forgetting his nickname. The skeleton’s cheeks turned orange as he coughed.

“YES WELL (Y/N), YOU CAN HELP ME COOK IF YOU WANT.”

“Sure thing, mind if I handle the cheese grating?” you asked, since it appeared to be the simplest thing to work on.

“OF COURSE,” Classic Paps said, putting his apron back on and moving to the cutting board. You grabbed a chunk of cheddar cheese and began grating it against the metal grater. This brought up the memory of when you helped Classic Paps make spaghetti your last day at the mansion. How it was considered a win to even get someone at the mansion to even want to spend time with you. How it used to be so hard just to get any of them to talk to you. Your shoulders were shaking and your hands suddenly became unsteady, doing a lousy job of grating the cheese. 

Larger hands suddenly appeared and gently plucked the cheese, placing it on the counter. Warm breath brushing your scalp the only clue of what was happening before arms circled you and you found yourself leaning against something warm and firm. A bony chin rested on your head, seriously what was with Papyruses wanted to use your head as a pillow?

“I Think That’s Enough Grating For Now,” said a soft voice, you felt yourself gently squeezed against warm flesh and the shaking stopped.

“Do You Want To Talk About It?”

“My best friends left,” you said, eyes watering slightly. You hastily wiped them with a sleeve, you didn’t want to start crying. You were already acting too weird. There was a quick intake of breath above you.

“I See, So You Got The Machine Working And Sent Them Home With That Invention Called…”

“Battering Ram,” you said proudly, finding yourself leaning further back. You couldn’t help it, he felt warm and solid.

“Ah Yes, I Can Understand Why You Three Wanted The Good-byes And Exit Done In Private. The Rest Of Us Didn’t Exactly Make Them Feel Welcomed,” Classic Paps said, voice still soft. A frown crossed your own lips being reminded you weren’t the only one ostracized.

“No you guys didn’t,” you said, now not so comfortable. You tried to pull away, but the strong arms got tighter. The movement appearing desperate with the way Classic Pap’s breath quickened.

“B.. But We Are Still Friends Right? You Accepted My Card,” he said, now shaking a little as well as he held you. You thought of the colorful card currently sitting on your desk and you relaxed back against Classic Paps. In turn the grip loosened and you heard a sigh of relief above you.

“Yeah we’re friends,” you said with your own sigh.

_At least until Tiffany gets back._

“I WON’T LET HER BREAK IT (Y/N).”

You weren’t sure what nearly made you jump, the way the words went back to full volume or how he appeared to know exactly what you were thinking.

“I WON’T LET HER BREAK OUR FRIENDSHIP. THINGS WILL NOT GO BACK TO THE WAY THEY USED TO BE,” Classic Paps said, making the words sound like an oath. You wanted to give assurance you believed him, but it felt too much like a lie. You still wanted to show some sign of trust though. Say something to show you recognized the friendship.

“W.. would you like to be called Papyrus now? I mean there won’t be any confusion now if we do.”

“DO YOU WANT TO CALL ME PAPYRUS?”

_How the heck am I supposed to answer that?_

“I- yes I’d like to call you Papyrus,” you said and meant it. The nickname ‘Classic Paps’ reminded you too much of the old feelings of resentment you used to have for him. A cheek touched against your cheek and you gulped as you felt your whole body being rubbed. Groin grinding softly against your butt and thick chest muscles flexing as torso arched downward to push against you.

“Then We’re Agreed, I’m Your Papyrus,” the skeleton said, excitement in the words even if they were whispered.

To say you felt you were losing control of the situation was an understatement.


	18. The Buffer is Gone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So remember when I said this story may ruin you with future reverse harem skeleton stories? If there's ever a part which will do it, it's this chapter. Fair warning given. Sorry for all the edits. Miss some grammar stuff.

“RIGHT, TIME TO GET BACK TO COOKING.”

The touching, the rubbing, the what-the-fuck grinding instantly disappeared as Clas- Papyrus let go and went back to the counter. You stared dumbly at the skeleton who chopped vegetables, wondering if maybe you just had a minor stroke accompanied by a hallucination.

“THE AMBASSADOR BY THE WAY TOLD ME OF YOUR IDEA. I’VE NEVER HEARD OF SOMETHING SO DARING AND ADVENTUROUS,” Papyrus said, giving you a grin from over his shoulder. You suddenly felt shyer, finding it hard to look at him.

“You um really think it could work,” you said, soul swelling with pride.

“I DO! AND I WOULD LIKE TO HELP YOU ACHIEVE IT IF YOU DON’T MIND HELP FROM A FRIEND,” Papyrus said as he moved on from the sliced vegetables to turning the beef in the skillet. A hissing of meat cooked could be heard, with smells of beef and spices in the air.

“I’d like that Papyrus,” you said, smiling now and feeling a little bit more at ease. What you proposed to the ambassador was ambitious and you could use all the support you could get.

“OF COURSE, COULD YOU SET THE DINNER TABLE?”

“Sure thing,” you said, as you went to get the plates. You paused bringing them to the dining room table. The largest table you’ve ever seen made to be able to seat ten people. Back when you lived at the mansion, you were probably the one who was least present at the table. The whole trying not to get food poisoning and not able to void your food made for a lot of bad experiences here. The times you could eat the food, there was an obvious difference in how everyone treated you. Small talk didn’t come your way as much and you were ignored by most of those present at the table. 

With your return you always ate with your best friends at their guest house. They wouldn’t let you eat alone, insisting every dinner be shared together. Their absence once again causing a numb feeling to come over you. No longer there to act as a buffer against painful things you wanted to forget.

“I really don’t have good memories of this place,” you muttered, glaring at the table as if it was it was some physical embodiment of your pain when in fact it was just a piece of furniture.

“Sorry to hear that kid.”

You jumped startled, losing your grip on the plates stacked in your hands. Phalanges grabbed the plates from you before you ended up dropping them. You already knew it was Red before looking up, the smell of cinnamon wafting onto your nose. He had a frown on his face, glancing from you to the table.

“Dinners together are supposed to be about bonding and shit, but it was a totally different experience for you,” Red said, tapping one of his sneakers against the floor. You got the feeling he was contemplating something. You didn’t mean for him to hear you, anyone to hear you. And now it looked like you were already making things awkward before dinner even started.

“Hey don’t worry about what I said-“

“HEY CLASSIC!”

There you went jumping a second time as Red yelled back to the kitchen.

“YES RED?”

“GOING TO GRAB A BLANKET AND TAKE IT OUTSIDE! MAKE THIS AN OUTDOOR PICNIC INSTEAD OF EATING IN!”

“WONDERFUL IDEA RED! THE WEATHER IS PERFECT FOR IT!”

“Here kid, hold these while I get a blanket,” Red said, handing you back the plates. You stared dumbly at the plates then opened your mouth.

“Red if this is about me getting weird about eating at the table it’s- and he teleported.”

In the end you gave up protesting as the dinner turned into an outdoor picnic. Red getting a picnic blanket, no idea where that was, and finding a nice spot in the backyard. Papyrus was using tupperware to carry freshly made tacos which smelled delicious. Blue showed up behind him, carrying various jars of salsa, sour cream, and avocado spread. Even Black lends a hand, bringing a pitcher of water and glasses.

They were quite and giving you occasional glances. The setup was nice, sun turning orange as it was near setting with not a cloud in the sky. But everything felt awkward and you knew why. They were wondering why you were having dinner with them instead of the skeletons you always ate with. As you all sat on the blanket, you tried to settle your nerves. Telling Papyrus what happened honestly wasn’t that hard. But the others could still give some responses you didn’t want to hear.

_WELL AT LEAST NOW YOU’RE SAFE FROM BEING EATEN._

_What? The freaks are gone?_

_IT’S A SHAME THEY DIDN’T TELL US SO WE COULD ALSO SAY GOOD-BYE._

Besides the potential insults from the edgier skeletons, you didn’t want Blue or even Paps to talk like there was any real concern they had for the brothers. It would just sound too fake. But the others were going to find out eventually, so with a deep breath you spoke.

“So my best friends left today. I got the machine working and sent them back to their world.”

There were some widening of eyes and outright staring. Looks like Papyrus respectfully decided to let you share the news. There was a minute of silence, your whole body feeling tense.

“WELL SAFE TRAVELS TO THEM. WHAT WOULD LIKE ON YOUR TACO (Y/N)?” Blue asked, grabbing a spoon and holding a taco up.

“Oh um sour cream and avocado spread,” you said, blinking in surprise. 

“SO I NEED TO ASK WARD, HOW DOES IT FEEL?” Black asked as he poured water into the glasses, passing them on to everyone.

“How does what feel?” you asked, still a little on guard. You took a glass from Red, wondering how worried you should be about the smirk on Black’s face.

“WHY HOW DOES IT FEEL SAVING A WHOLE KINGDOM FROM STARVATION? I CAN BRAG ABOUT A LOT OF THINGS, BUT EVEN THAT’S NOT ON MY LIST,” Black said before taking a sip of his own glass.

“Yeah kid, should we buy you a medal?” Red asked with a chuckle and a wink. You knew you were turning red and you hated it.

“I don’t know if my device will work yet,” you said, knowing you were deflecting. You quickly grabbed a taco and stuffed it in your mouth, hoping chewing would excuse you from this line of questioning.

“DON’T BE SILLY (Y/N), OF COURSE IT’S GOING TO WORK. BUT NOW WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING SERIOUS- USING THE MACHINE TO GET OUR SIBLINGS BACK,” Papyrus stated before taking a bite of his own taco. You were suddenly reminded of how much responsibility Papyrus showed since Sans disappeared. He was always speaking to the ambassador, seem to have more responsibilities in the royal guard, and you were pretty sure the others listened more closely to what he said now. Would all that change when Sans returned?

“I’ll have the calculations ready in less then a week. Then I should be able to bring them back,” you said before taking another bite of your taco. Papyrus really was a good cook, you’d never tell Blue but this tasted way better then the last ones he cooked for everyone.

“I DON’T SUPPOSE YOU CAN GIVE US A CLUE AS TO WHAT STATE MY MUTT AND THE OTHERS WILL BE IN WHEN THEY RETURN,” Black said before biting into his own taco with a loud crunch.

“Actually funny thing, if my calculations are right… they won’t even notice how over two months passed since they’ve been gone. It’s like they’re frozen in time currently in the void,” you said, feeling good about finally having answers. Now that you knew the pattern which pulled the skeletons into the void, you were able to find out a lot more about what happened to them.

“I SEE, IN THAT CASE THERE’S AN IMPORTANT QUESTION I NEED TO ASK OF RED AND BLACK. COUSINS I’LL KEEP IT SIMPLE, ARE YOU PLANNING TO CREATE ANOTHER SOUL BOND WITH TIFFANY?”

You glanced concerned at Blue, but other than his glass shaking slightly, he appeared ok. He even gave you a reassuring smile and mouthed ‘I’m fine’ silently. You now felt embarrassed at how obvious your worry was and suddenly found your drink a lot more fascinating to look at.

“You seriously have to ask? Fuck no!”

“I HAVE NO INTEREST IN RESUMING SUCH A RELATIONSHIP OR HONESTLY ANY KIND WITH THE WOMAN.”

“THAT IS MY THOUGHTS AS WELL, BUT WE DO STILL HAVE THE STICKY SITUATION WHERE OUR BROTHERS WILL STILL BE SOUL BONDED TO HER.”

There was a tense silence, everyone appearing a lot more solemn then before. Papyrus sighed before speaking.

“(Y/N) I NEED TO ASK A FAVOR, I NEED YOU TO LEAVE THE BASEMENT AFTER YOU BRING BACK EVERYONE. THIS IS A PERSONAL FAMILY DISCUSSION WHICH I’M AFRAID YOU CAN’T BE PART OF,” Papyrus said, his words causing a pit in your stomach.

“I.. I guess, sure,” you stuttered suddenly having a flashback of when they kicked you out of the mansion. How every face held you in contempt while staring lovingly at Tiffany.

_They’re going to do it again. They’re just getting together with Tiffany and figuring out how to get rid of you-_

“Hey!”

You jerked as you felt phalanges on your shoulder, squeezing it. You swallowed, seeing Red hold you in nearly an iron grip. His face contorted into an expression of frustration and guilt while loosening his hold on you.

“We’re not trying to gain up on you kid. It’s just… this is going to get ugly. She’s going to use whatever lies she can come up with including saying shit about you. We just don’t want you to get caught in the cross-fire,” Red said, hand going from your shoulder to your hair, ruffling it. The affectionate gesture took you by surprise and you almost leaned into his touch.

“I’LL STAY WITH HIM.”

Everyone turned to Blue, startled expressions all around. Papyrus was the one who voiced the question on everyone’s mind.

“BLUE DON’T YOU WANT TO CONFRONT TIFFANY ON WHAT HER ACTIONS DID TO YOUR BROTHER?”

“I DO BUT I ALSO WANT TO GIVE ANY REASSURANCE I CAN TO (Y/N) THAT HIS NOT BEING BETRAYED. I DON’T NEED TO BE THERE TO TALK ABOUT A BROTHER STILL SOUL BONDED SINCE MINES DEAD.”

The word ‘dead’ made everyone flinch and you suddenly felt selfish. You were worried they’d kick you out, but Blue was dealing with something much bigger- facing the person who caused his only sibling to die. Honestly even if the worst happened and they kicked you out of the mansion, so what? It wouldn’t be the end of things for you. You’d just do what you did before, get yourself back on your feet and move forward.

“No Blue, I want you to be there. You deserve to have your moment to face Tiffany after what she did. I promise I’ll be fine alone while you guys talk,” you said, trying to sound confident. You weren’t sure how successful you were, Blue arched one eye while studying you for a minute. Just as you were about to squirm under the intense gaze he finally spoke.

“Ok, If That’s What You Want.”

From there everyone gave up on small talk. Instead each person appeared to be in their own little world, contemplating what was going to happen. The future never seemed more uncertain.

“Ok, we’re all set,” you said after checking the numbers on the screen a third time. A miscalculation could lead to the whole mansion being sucked into the void. Papyrus watched you work from over your shoulder while wearing jeans and a shirt with the words- ‘Sticks and Stones DO NOT Break My Bones’. 

This was so different from when you sent your buddies home. Because then even though it scared you to send them back, you could at least say you wanted to send them back home. They had a whole kingdom to save from starvation.

This though… you knew deep down if this didn’t work and they didn’t appear, a part of you would be relieved. A part of you right now was even hoping it wouldn’t work, they’d never come back and this was the way things would stay. You didn’t beat yourself up too much for the feeling. You were pretty sure given everything you went through, it was just human to feel that way.

“ALRIGHT (Y/N), I THINK WE’RE READY,” Papyrus said, glancing at the skeletons behind him. Blue had both Red and Black almost attached to his hips, you were pretty sure the setup was intentional. No matter how much Blue assured everyone he could handle this, it was going to be one hell of an encounter. You went to the controls and this time punch four buttons in quick succession. All the actual true data inputting for the calculations done yesterday for hours.

The white flash was brighter this time, you had to close your eyes.

“What the-“

“WHERE ARE WE!?”

“AAAaaggghhh!”

Everyone winced at Tiffany’s high pitch scream. Sans and Mutt were laying on the floor, looking around in confusion. Edge had created a sword-like bone, holding it in a defensive position. It was only after Tiffany stopped screaming, possibly from vocal cords giving out, that Papyrus took a step forward. 

“EVERYONE PLEASE CALM DOWN. I’LL EXPLAIN EVERYTHING, BUT FIRST- (Y/N) PLEASE GO TO THE PATIO IN THE BACKYARD. WE’LL GET YOU WHEN THIS CONVERSATION IS OVER,” Papyrus said, giving you a nod. You returned the nod, heading out to the exit.

“Bro how did we end up in the basement? And what are you wearing!?”

“I THINK BROTHER I SHOULD START WITH EXPLAINING WHAT TODAY’S DATE IS.”

It was the last words you heard before the basement door closed behind you. A flash of white light attacked your eyes and you closed them hissing. It took a couple of blinks before you could see past spots, to find an envelope on the stairs in front of you.

“What the hell,” you muttered, picking up the envelope. Your name was on it and without thinking you opened it. What you saw inside made your eyes nearly pop out of your skull.

Blue couldn’t actually directly look at her yet. He knew if he did he might throw every ounce of magic down to his very soul into a attack to kill her. It just wasn’t fair how she was back, safe, and healthy. <strike>And his just dust scattered to the trees.</strike>

“You’re telling me over two months have passed?” Sans asked, scratching his skull. Blue could feel the gnawing hatred he felt targeting Tiffany move to another. Sans was the one who brought her. <strike>He was supposed to protect us.</strike> Brought her into their home and lives. 

_He also brought (Y/N)…_

He tried to focus on that thought, focus on you. And the feeling in his soul changed instantly. The hatred and pain not gone but suppressed as he thought of you nearby. You didn’t want to be left alone, you weren’t happy with Papyrus saying you couldn’t be a part of this. The fear and lack of trust was all over your face when Papyrus said the words.

That’s why he offered to stay with you, it was time he made your happiness matter first instead of his own. But you turned down the offer, wanted him to get his chance to face the person who still tormented him in his nightmares. He wouldn’t do anything rash, make you regret giving him this chance.

“RED YOU IDIOT, HOW COULD YOU LEAVE ME STUCK IN THE VOID THAT LONG!?”

“A LOT OF QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED ONCE I PLAY A VIDEO,” Papyrus said as he pressed a couple of buttons.

“Video?” squeaked Tiffany, the fear in her voice almost made Blue smile.

“WHY YES TIFFANY, SANS HAD A HIDDEN CAMERA INSTALLED IN THE BASEMENT. I BELIEVE IT WAS TO WATCH (Y/N), BUT IT APPEARS IT BECAME USEFUL IN FINDING OUT YOUR MISDEEDS INSTEAD,” Papyrus said as the video played on the screen. The whole basement was silent, Blue kept his eyes to the ground. It was easy to tell when everyone saw his brother’s death, the gasps of horror, even Red next to him flinched a little. When he heard the tape stopped, he finally lifted his head, hollow sockets staring straight at Tiffany.

“You Murdered My Brother,” Blue said, each word laced with the hatred he felt. The girl’s knees shook slightly and Edge took a step in front of her.

“Let’s all calm down. It’s obvious this was an accident and-“

“-BROTHER WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, SHUT IT. LET BLUE HAVE HIS SAY. HIS OWED IT CONSIDERING THE ONLY FAMILY HE KNEW IS NOW DEAD,” Papyrus said, giving Sans a glare. Seeing Papyrus not smiling, scowling in fact at his own brother, was probably something no one had ever seen before. Not even Sans himself who stared at him with jaw dropping.

“It was an accident,” Tiffany said, with a small voice. She was rather a sad sight when put off balanced. Where was her practiced poses? Where was her pre-planned lines she probably had for every opportunity? Blue wasn’t going to give her a chance to remember them.

“WAS IT AN ACCIDENT WHEN YOU BASHED THE MACHINE WITH THE FIRE EXTINGUISHER? WAS IT AN ACCIDENT WHEN YOU STOLE THE CODE TO THE BASEMENT DOOR FROM MY DRESSER? OH DON’T LOOK SO SHOCKED, IT WASN’T HARD TO FIGURE OUT,” Blue said with a chuckle, feeling the skeletons next to him tense. Seeing how Mutt, Edge, and Sans were silently gathering their magic.

“I KNOW I’M PRETTY STUPID, I MEAN I FELL FOR YOU AFTERALL. BUT EVEN I CAN TELL WHEN A PIECE OF PAPER IS MISSING. I’M ASSUMING IT’S IN YOUR POCKET SWEETY? GO ON AND PULL IT OUT,” Blue said with a casual gesture. His brother Stretch may have been a genius scientist, but in some ways he was still a scatterbrain. Never able to remember the code to the basement door and couldn’t keep track of a written one in his messy room. 

Tiffany questioned him about it, hiding her inquiry behind a joke on how sloppy Stretch was. Then convinced him they should sleep together in the same bed for comfort after his ever so ‘stressful’ moment of (Y/N) leaving. It was the last night his brother was alive. He noticed Tiffany’s hand going to her right pocket, but she froze as all eyes turned towards her.

“NOW COME ON SWEETY, PULL IT OUT OF THE POCKET LIKE YOU WERE ABOUT TO DO. A LITTLE LATE FOR AN INNOCENT ACT **Don’t You Think**,” Blue nearly growled the last words, magic making them sound purely inhuman.

“Fine! I took it, but you have this all wrong!” Tiffany exclaimed as she pulled folded paper out and threw it to the floor.

“OH REALLY,” Blue said rolling his eyes. Looked like she was getting back into her old role

“Blue you have no idea how sorry I am for what happened! But you have to understand, I did what I did for love!”

Blue laughed, he laughed so hard he was keeling over. All that could be heard in the basement was his bellowing laughter reaching near hysterics. Oh by the Stars she was so predictable. Why was it so easy now to figure out what she was going to say? (Y/N) must have thought they were all the biggest idiots on the face of the planet.

Finally after getting his breath back and wiping a tear from his eye, he stood up. Uhoh, now everyone was giving him worried looks. Best to try to keep it together. Something told him Paps was going to insist on a lot more sessions with his therapist.

“OH SWEETY I KNOW LOVE AND TRUST ME, IT’S NOT SELFISH. IT’S NOT DETERMINED TO KEEP SOMETHING TO THE POINT OF DESTROYING THEM. I LEARNED THAT LESSON THE HARD WAY WITH (Y/N).”

“ENOUGH! I RESPECT THAT YOU NEED TO CONFRONT MY SOULMATE ON HER ACTIONS, BUT I WON’T STAND BY AND LET THIS TURN INTO A ONE WAY BIRAGE OF INSULTS,” Edge said with a huff while giving Tiffany a disappointed look. The girl nearly wilted under the judging sharp eyes.

“Same here cousin, me and m’lord also can’t let our soulmate-“

“-SHE IS NO LONGER MY SOULMATE MUTT,” Black interrupted, now there were new gasps.

“Same here boss and I have no interest repeating it,” Red said, an underlying steel to his words. Edge blinked in surprise at his brother, the brother who never showed a hint of defying him before.

“YOU SEE WHEN TIFFANY BROKE THE MACHINE, YOU THREE WERE PULLED INTO THE VOID ALSO BECAUSE OF YOUR SOUL BONDS. WHILE OUR SOUL BONDS ON THE OTHER HAND SNAPPED OFF. IT’S ALSO ANOTHER IMPORTANT TOPIC WE NEED TO DISCUSS,” Papyrus said with arms crossed.

“B..but Papyrus, surely you want to be bonded again. Remember all our moments together?” Tiffany asked, placing a hand on her heart. Blue practically had the gesture memorized. She made it every time she asked for something. Why did it take him this long to notice it?

“WELL TIFFANY HERE’S THE THING, (Y/N) CAME BACK TO HELP US EVEN WITH HOW POORLY WE TREATED HIM BEFORE. WE’D NEVER HAVE GOTTEN OUR SIBLINGS BACK WITHOUT HIM. AND HIS GIVEN US SOME NEW INSIGHT ON HOW HUMANS AND MONSTERS SHOULD TREAT EACH OTHER,” Papyrus said, rubbing his chin. For the first time since this meeting, Blue felt fear. Why was Papyrus talking about (Y/N)? Didn’t he know the girl would instantly see him as a threat?

Quickly whipping his eyes back to the girl, he could see a new determination there. Like she was about to enter battle on a war field.

“I think I’m getting a clearer picture of the situation. So (Y/N) played a part in making you guys decide we shouldn’t be soul bonded?” she asked, now crossing her own arms. Blue tried opening him his mouth, but no words came out. He didn’t know what to say. Why was Papyrus doing this? The whole point of (Y/N) not being here was to protect him. <strike>He had to protect him from her.</strike>

Even Black and Red appeared confused, exchanging glances with him. It was different with Sans, Edge, and Mutt though. Their confusion about everything which was happening seemed to lift away like a fog. The same determination seen on Tiffany’s face started mirroring theirs.

“TIFFANY WHY DON’T YOU ALSO GO OUT TO THE PATIO WHILE WE DISCUSS THIS FURTHER. I KNOW THIS HAS ALL BEEN STRESSFUL FOR YOU AND UNFORTUNATELY I THINK OUR DISAGREEMENTS ABOUT SOUL BONDS IS GOING TO STRETCH OUT TO A VERY LONG TALK,” Papyrus said, turning and gesturing to the door.

_NONONONONO, I won’t let her near-_

Blue felt a hand latch onto his shaking shoulder, Black’s words heard softly.

“I Know What His Doing, Trust Him. I Wouldn’t Let Him Endanger My Ward,” Black whispered, the words uncharacteristically sounding like a plea. Black never pleaded, for anything. But he was pleading now and Blue took a deep breath, trying to center himself. Papyrus argued with his own brother just so he could have his moment to confront Tiffany. He wasn’t back falling in love with her. And he’d trust him… for now.

Tiffany had totally ignored their exchange, instead heading to the door while giving Papyrus her best million-dollar smile. She saw him as a potential monster to flip back to her side and would use every bit of charm to make it happen.

“Bro I think I know what’s going on,” Sans said right after the door closed.

“HMMM?”

“It’s (Y/N) isn’t it? Filled your head full of nonsense! Bet he trash talked her the whole time he was here fixing the machine.”

“WELL I WOULDN’T GO THAT FAR BROTHER, BUT HE DID REVEAL SOME LESS APPEALING THINGS ABOUT HER.”

“His tricking you bro! I don’t care if he helped us get the machine fixed! You’re being used!”

“WELL SANS YOU MAKE HIM SOUND DANGEROUS. WHY DON’T YOU SHORT CUT TO THE ROOF OF THE MANSION AND KEEP AN EAR, WELL METAPHORICALLY SPEAKING, CLOSE TO THEM TO SEE HOW THEY’RE DOING. WE WOULDN’T WANT (Y/N) TO BE UPSETTING TIFFANY WITH THIS ‘TRASH TALK’ YOU SPEAK OF.”

“I’m glad you’re starting to understand bro. You guys talk some sense into them. See just what (Y/N) said to mess them up,” Sans said, pointing to Edge and Mutt. Then in a blink he was gone.

“PAPS WOULD YOU TELL ME WHAT YA DOING!?” Red bellowed, no one got a chance to say anything before Edge walked forward and karate chopped his big skull. 

“DAMN IT! THAT HURT BOSS!”

“THEN STOP BEING SUCH A TOOL! IT’S OBVIOUS THAT WORTHLESS HUMAN IS USING YOU!”

“DON’T CALL (Y/N) WORTHLESS!”

Blue just didn’t get it, why was Papyrus making (Y/N) sound like some sort of puppet master? Why even send (Y/N) away if this was going to happen? Now Sans was out there spying on them, totally thinking-

“I’m An Idiot,” Blue said out loud, rapping his own skull with a fist.

“YOU FINALLY GOT IT,” Black said with a roll of his eyes. Red gave them a glare as he continued to try to hold back another karate chop.

“What are you guys talking about? This fucking sucks, Sans is out there and- OH FUCK STARS! Paps you are a genius,” Red said, grinning at the tall skeleton. Edge pulled his hand back, karate chop forgotten as he stared suspiciously at Papyrus.

“WHAT IS MY BROTHER BABBLING ABOUT NOW? THE ONLY PAPYRUS HIS ALLOWED TO CALL A GENIUS IS ME!”

“Oh Boss, your rose-colored glasses are so getting shattered.”

“THERE’S NOTHING ROSY ABOUT ME!” 

You stared at the picture again, not believing your eyes. They weren’t supposed to use the machine in their world. Well at least they weren’t supposed to use it unless something went wrong. It was dangerous after all, but looks like they decided to take a chance. 

“YOU!”

You raised your head startled as Tiffany in all her bitch angry glory walked up to you and shoved. You grunted in pain as you landed on your butt, staring up at someone who looked scarier than even Edge on a bad day.

“What did you say to them?” Tiffany nearly shrieked, making you winced. You got up from the tile floor with another grunt, taking a couple of wary steps away from her.

“What are you talking about?”

“They don’t want to soul bond with me! And I know you turned them against me!”

“I’m pretty sure it had more to do with getting Stretch killed.”

“That was an accident.”

“Yeah, but his still dead,” you deadpanned, getting rewarded with Tiffany blinking in surprise. Her face contorted a little less into anger, giving you a judging look.

“Well it looks like someone grew a little backbone while I was away,” Tiffany said, giving a fake smile.

“Look I didn’t say anything bad about you while you were gone… although Papyrus did find out you didn’t eat his friendship spaghetti,” you said, getting rewarded a roll of her eyes.

“Excuse me for not wanting to taste vomit. What did you do here while we were gone?” she asked, sounding like a cop interrogating a criminal.

“Just fixing the machine,” you said with a sigh, tucking your picture under your shirt.

“And…? You didn’t do anything involving the other skeletons?”

“We um hung out? Went to Grillby’s, exercised, and even headed to the beach,” you said, getting a snort from Tiffany.

“God you’re pathetic.”

“Excuse me,” you said, really wishing she wasn’t a girl so you were allowed to shove back.

“Ok I believe you when you say you didn’t bad mouth me, but it’s obvious what’s going on here. You’re trying to replace me. Be the new favorite human with their own eight soul bonds and filthy rich monster husbands.”

“You’re delusional.”

“And you have no idea how much time and effort I put into this,” Tiffany hissed, eyes flashing hatred.

“I’m guessing all the way back when you grilled Alphys on all the details about soul bonds and how monsters felt about polygamy.”

“I see the dinosaur chicken shit has been gossiping.”

“Don’t call her that,” you said, eyes narrowing.

“But you got it wrong as usual. You don’t even truly understand who you’re going against. Let me tell you the truth behind my first meeting with Sans the Skeleton.” 

Tiffany checked herself a second time with a mirror. Hair long and curly, sure to fascinate a monster who doesn’t have hair. Makeup there, but subtle and not too much. A guy who wears slippers and hoodie every day wasn’t going to care about hours of work on a face. She closed the mirror and put it in her purse, then grabbed the book on astronomy.

How many girls said they’re taking an astronomy class in college just to attract a monster’s attention? She briefly considered taking a physics class and then dumped the idea. It would be like a five-year trying to impress a grown-up on how they knew the alphabet. She entered the bar and there he was, Sans the Skeleton sitting at his usual seat.

There were a lot of rich monsters thanks to all that gold they had. Several of them a perfect chump to get close, marry, and take them for all they’re worth. Still though she couldn’t just pick one at random, there had to be criteria. First off some chance of attraction, she could see herself getting kinky with the guy after what she saw in the pictures. Better then that disgusting blob named Jerry she first researched.

But more importantly then that was the personality. The type of person who was perfect to trick and Sans had all the signs of being the perfect target. He was smart, but smart with science and not people. He was shy, but showed signs of wanting to interact with others with his jokes and pranks. 

Most importantly of all though, he was lazy. He was the type of guy who was never going to put in the effort to find a relationship. He wanted the said perfect relationship to fall in his lap. He wanted it spoon fed to him as he laid back and enjoyed. In other words, he would never question just how well things were turning out for him. 

She walked to the bar, keeping a seat between herself and Sans. If he didn’t show interest now, she could always just keep it a routine until he noticed. In a lot of ways this was going to be like fishing, patience was a virtue.

“Club soda please,” Tiffany said with a smile to the fire elemental as she pulled out the book and opened it. She didn’t fake how she was reading chapter two, it really was part of her homework for the astronomy class.

“Whatcha reading kid?”

“Just something for my class. Didn’t feel like reading it alone at home,” Tiffany said, not daring to mention the subject. Not even slowing in opening the book when she sat. He could find it suspicious how she was reading something he liked, best to make him work for it.

She heard a chair scrape and slippers walk along the floor. Looks like patience wasn’t going to be needed this fishing trip.

“Guessing it’s astronomy from the pictures.”

A club soda was placed in front of her and she took a sip before speaking.

“Yeah, I’m still new to it, but so far loving it. The stars make for good inspiration for my artwork,” Tiffany said, finally turning to him with a smile. Almost winked, then changed her mind. Save flirting for at least a month. He had half a smile himself as he studied the page you were on, keeping a respectful distance.

“Guess the book paints a pretty picture of what’s above us.”

“Yep, color me impressed,” Tiffany said, smile widening. The skeletons eyes lit up, smile going halfway to full on full wattage. She knew reading all those stupid pun books would pay off. But God how she hated the kiddy jokes.

“Names Sans, Sans the Skeleton,” Sans said, offering his phalanges.

_Oh I know._

“Tiffany Loves,” Tiffany said with a smirk, grabbing the hand. She jumped a little at hearing the whoopy cushion, easy to fake surprise when she knew it was coming. She gave an eye roll as the skeleton chuckled.

“Y..you targeted him,” you said, feeling physically ill. You thought you were getting an idea of who Tiffany was after learning a couple of her secrets. But you were coming to the scary realization that you had no idea who this person was.

“Oh don’t look so shocked. You think millionaires just magically find the perfect girl? No, the perfect girl finds them. It’s how my mother bagged my dad, researched and pursued him,” Tiffany said with a smirk.

“But why would you do it, I mean you’re already well off,” you said, still having trouble wrapping your head around it. 

“No my parents are well off and my Dad can’t even go to the bathroom without my Mom’s permission. Unless I wanted to be forever under thumb, I needed my own way to become independent,” Tiffany said, or bragging more accurately. She sounded prouder by the second.

“So I went with looking for a monster millionaire and just like I thought, so much easier versus getting a human millionaire. They’re all so innocent and easy to trick. And then the incident with the machine happened.”

“I ended up moving things faster than expected. Told Sans some sob story of me being kicked out of my apartment a month earlier than planned. Invited me to his place though as expected. Had to get a handle on his home situation when he said he had a whole bunch of cousins who magically appeared,” Tiffany said, twirling one of her hairs.

“I have to say I didn’t right that minute plan to have all of them. The idea just formed in my mind while I squeezed Alphys for any information she had on soul bonds. And you know what was so unbelievable?” Tiffany asked, going from proud to excited.

_The idea that you have a soul._

“How fucking easy it was! I mean all you had to do was tell pun jokes to half those guys. And to the other half of the guys you just offered to help them with their cooking. It was just so stupid how they thought I even liked puns! God the only people who fucking tell puns are clowns to kindergarteners!”

You were coming to a realization, Tiffany was enjoying this. More accurately enjoying unloading all this onto you. She really was proud of how manipulative she was and she was finally getting a chance to boast about it all.

“Then there was the easy excuse for not committing to one guy. I just said my ex-boyfriend abused me before kicking me out of our apartment. The perfect excuse to give affections here and there, but make no promises to one guy only. By the time those guys wanted to take things further, they didn’t mind sharing me.”

“Sounds like you really knew what you were doing,” you said with a swallow, hoping this nightmarish bragging was coming to an end.

“I’m glad you understand so now you know how fruitless it is. You had your fun, but now things are going back to the way they were. Me on top and you out of here,” she said, smiling with arms crossed.

“Eeerrr no, I think you’re making a big assumption there,” you said, pulling back out a picture you had hidden under your shirt.

“And what’s that?” she asked, already looking bored now that the subject wasn’t about her conquests.

“I don’t give a flying fuck about making any of the guys fall in love with me. That’s not even close to the reason why I’m planning to stay,” you said, giving her a grin. She frowned, obviously not liking the change in direction with this conversation. 

“So why are you staying some place where I’m going to make these guys hate your guts?” Tiffany asked, meaning every word she said.

“Because I’m cool times ten.”

“Excuse me,” Tiffany said, arching an eyebrow.

“I just got some great news, you’re looking at the guy who saved over a hundred thousand monsters from starvation,” you said, holding up a picture. She peered at the picture reaching for it, you quickly pulled it back.

“Nuh-uh, this is by the way a picture of my Sans and Papyrus on the surface. They had someone take it and then Sans sent it back to this world so I’d know everything turned out good,” you said with a smile, taking one last look at the picture before putting it under your shirt. It showed Sans and Papyrus standing just outside a cave mouth, blue sky above them, trees around them, and each of them giving a victory sign to the camera.

“So what?” scoffed Tiffany, sneer in place.

“So what? So here you are bragging about suckering eight naïve skeletons like it’s the best thing in the world. Meanwhile I just saved a whole species from genocide. Kind of sad of you to think you’re the best of us two,” you said with a shrug. If glares could kill, Tiffany would have turned you into a pile of ashes now.

“And you know what? I don’t want to stop there. Me and the ambassador have a plan. We’re going to use the machine to look for other worlds where monsters need help. See if we can give a happy ending to them like the monsters in this world got.”

“Sounds like the plot of a bad Disney movie,” Tiffany said with a roll of her eyes, but she sounded nervous. She probably expected you to be a lot more scared at this point. And more importantly care a lot more about what she said.

“Disney rocks and things are not going back to the way you had them. I’m afraid there are going to be a couple of changes,” you said, grin widening as you took a step forward. The girl took a step back, then squared her shoulders.

“Like fuck you’re calling the shots.”

“If you don’t like it, we can bring the ambassador here who by the way totally calls the shots for everyone, including Sans,” you said, getting to see Tiffany’s forehead wrinkle in doubt.

“What do you want?” Tiffany asked with suspicion.

_Glad I’m a lot more ready for that question now._

“You don’t go near the machine ever again. You don’t interfere with what the machine is being used for. You ever take a step in that basement, I’ll have royal guards pulling you off the mansion property.”

“It’s San's machine, he gets to say who goes near it,” Tiffany said, sounding almost like a sulking child.

“Actually he doesn’t, per royal decree, the royal family took over ownership of the machine after this second mishap. We just didn’t get a chance to share the news with Sans yet,” you said, enjoying the way the girl’s jaw dropped.

“Second condition, you leave Blue alone. As in you don’t go near him, talk to him, or have anything to do with him. When he enters a room, you find an excuse to go to another room,” you said, noticing an evil glint from Tiffany's eyes.

“Oh so you still want him? Are you sure? Even after I already tasted the goods,” Tiffany said, licking her lips. You never felt the urge to hit someone so strong before. Instead you took a deep breath.

“Believe it or not, this helps you too since I doubt you want to die from bunch of bones skewering you. You tormented the guy enough, he shouldn’t even have to deal with you living here. Before you even think of messing with him, remember I have a machine that lets me make people disappear out of thin air,” you said, threat causing her to turn pale and swallow. There was a full minute before she spoke.

“No… other conditions?”

“What? You expect me to say you can’t try your crazy multi soul bond plan with the other six skeletons? Go for it, I won’t try to stop you. If any of those guys are dumb enough to be with you after everything you did, they deserve it,” you said, realizing it was partly a bluff. You did care whether or not Black, Red, and Papyrus fell for her charm. But you couldn’t make them change, if they wanted her, it wasn’t something you could really stop.

She stood there a minute, tapping her chin as she studied you. You simply returned the gaze, too tired to even care what was going on in her head.

“Ok, you have a deal.”

Neither of you saw the slouching figure of a skeleton slowly rise, tears silently streaming down his eye sockets. He disappeared, his departure wasn’t noticed.

What you and Tiffany did notice was a skinny man in t-shirt and jeans, climbing over the fence and dropping into the backyard. He limped slightly as he ran towards you two.

“Uhoh,” you muttered, recognizing the face which looked a little crazed.

“What’s that nerd Scott doing here?” Tiffany asked, hands on hips.

“I don’t- wait how do you know Scott?” you asked, momentarily forgetting how you should probably go get Black.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Tiffany said with a smirk. Said smirk disappeared when Scott, panting like a dog, pulled out a pistol from under his shirt.

“YOU TWO RUINED MY FUCKING LIFE!” he screamed, gun waving wildly in the air.


	19. Conclusion (Sexual Content)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING- Sexual Content near the end.

Both you and Tiffany froze, hands half raised in a gesture of surrender. It was purely instinct, the motion appearing the natural response when you had a barrel of gun unsteadily pointed at you.

“Didn’t expect to see me, did you! I made bond and decided to come here after getting my uncle’s gun. I had enough of this shit! The lawyer says I’m probably going to jail and my career in engineering is over with,” Scott said, wiping sweat from his eyes with his other hand. Tiffany was going from shocked to alert and you didn’t like how her eyes narrowed when she opened her mouth.

“Scott, your issue is with (Y/N). I won’t get in the way of you two-“

“-SHUT THE FUCK UP BITCH! I know how you were lying through your fucking teeth to me!” Scott nearly screamed, poking the gun against her chest. The moment of confidence was gone, now she was cringing away with her eyes closed.

“Um lying?” you asked, feeling like you were only seeing half the picture here. Tiffany knew him and there was no mistaken the hatred in Scott’s eyes who was glaring at the girl.

“Yeah, she was the one who told me you had sex with a monster to get the job!”

_Of course she did…_

“But as much as I hate you two, I even hate those monsters more! Especially the two who nearly killed me. So if you tell me where they are, you two get to live,” Scott said, an evil smirk on his face.

Your brain was racing a mile a minute. You had to think of a response, but what? Maybe you could say they were with the ambassador-

“They’re in the basement!” Tiffany nearly shrieked, taking a step back. Seriously, how did someone who literally bonded her soul to those guys be able to turn coat so fast? Wasn’t there supposed to be some soul bond rule in place which said- thou cannot get your soulmate killed?

“Well show me where it is,” Scott said, voice finally going back to normal volume. You both turned and headed through the back door, ever conscious of the gun aimed at you from behind. The air conditioner did nothing to stop the sweat streaking down your back. The three of you took slow steps down to the basement door, a steel door with an alphabetical keypad on the side wall. A red light above the keypad indicating the door was locked.

“What’s the password?” Scott asked, twitchy eyes going from keypad to door.

“Arithmetic,” you said, rushing the word out before Tiffany could say anything.

“That’s not the code,” Tiffany said with a frown.

“Tiffany you’ve been gone for over two months, do you really think we’d keep the same code since then?” you asked, rolling your eyes. Act confident, don’t pee in your pants, pray someone on the other side picked up on what word was typed.

“Yeah Tiffany, shut your fucking mouth. I don’t need to hear any more of your lies,” Scott said, shoving the girl against the wall as he quickly past by. The gun was still pointed at you two while Scott had his eyes trained on the keypad. Tiffany gave the guy an icy glare which quickly turned back to a terrified expression, not as genuine now.

Scott turned to them grinning as he typed letters on the pad, trying to keep his eyes on both the keypad and them.

“Let’s get this party started.”

“It.. it.. hurts Paps… It was all… fake…”

The words could barely be made out between the sobs erupting from Sans as he clung to his brother, blue watery tears soaking Papyrus’s shoulder.

Papyrus loved his brother and while his brother was good with secrets, there was one thing Papyrus knew about him- he protected himself. Some people kept a wall between themselves and others, his brother had a wall, moat, and a hedge maze to keep others at a distance. Always ready to divert attention with a joke or prank. Never committing to trusting others as ready as Papyrus.

Which is why Papyrus knew it wasn’t enough to tell Sans what Tiffany was truly like. He would not believe anyone, not even his own brother, because Tiffany got past all those obstacles and lodged herself comfortably in San’s heart. Sans protected his heart more then anyone Papyrus knew, but once you got past those barriers, his faith in you was unwavering.

Only witnessing the real Tiffany would work. It took manipulating (Y/N) though to make that happen and the guilt scratched at Papyrus’s soul. So many others, especially Tiffany, already manipulated his friend. But as much as his valued his friendship with (Y/N), his brother’s wellbeing came first.

“I’m Sorry Sans, I Know This Is Hard,” Papyrus said, rubbing San’s back, hoping it would ease the sobs.

“Beep!”

Apparently, karma decided Papyrus had to pay a price for his actions because he got a lot more than he bargained for. All he was hoping was for Sans to catch Tiffany dropping her act, showing her darker side. He didn’t count on her doing a full out confession of how she played with Sans like a puppet. How every memory and action between them was in her control.

It might have destroyed any chance Tiffany had of laying claim on his brother, but it was too much, too damaging. He could hear his brother’s soul crack, grief hitting him harder than ever before.

“Listen Sans, in my world there’s plenty of monsters who separated from their soulmate. You never have to see her again,” Mutt said, giving Sans other shoulder a pat. Edge was staring at the wall, face expressionless after Sans shared the news of what he heard from Tiffany.

“Beep!”

“WHAT IS WITH THAT STUPID BEEPING!” Edge screamed, whirling and glaring at the computer against the wall.

“Relax boss, someone is putting in the wrong code to get in. Probably the skank, they keep typing the word arithmetic,” Red said, glancing at the screen. Black’s eye lights shrunk to tiny dots.

“FUCK!”

“Why isn’t this fucking working!” yelled Scott, turning to glare at the duo. Tiffany always considered herself good at staying cool under pressure, but even she was reaching her limit. Still though… this could all turn out good for her, very good.

All the skeletons who did not trust her were closest to the basement door. The ones still soul bonded with her were farthest. This could all end with her no longer worrying about the ones who didn’t trust her, especially Blue. Scott would be killed, but not before getting some shots off on the monsters who were making her life difficult. And afterwards it would be (Y/N) linked to Scott, indirectly causing it all because Scott was out to hurt (Y/N). 

She didn’t plan this, it was all just falling into place perfectly. And as a cherry on top, Scott was pointing the gun a lot more at you because he couldn’t get the door open.

“Look it’s a long word, maybe you’re just typing it wrong. Do you want me to do it?” her fellow hostage said, shrugging his shoulders.

“I AM TYPING IT RIGHT! ARE YOU SCREWING WITH ME?! BECAUSE I WILL-“

Two bodies jerked in two directions, (Y/N) in blue light flying up the stairs, Scott slamming into the door with a large bone sticking in his stomach. Both Tiffany and Scott stared dumbly at the white bone shaped like a spike, it’s sharp end firmly lodged in the skinny man’s body. Blood was already staining the shirt.

Tiffany turned and jogged up the steps, cursing that she was left there. When she reached the top, she saw you laying on the floor with Blue on top of you. Blue light shimmered around the two like a bubble as Blue’s eye lights moved from her to the stairs repeatedly.

The others were frozen, scowls and grimaces in place no doubt from how bad things were. It was Sans though who got her attention, he looked PISSED. Eyes totally black, for the first time the easy going skeleton appeared rageful with teeth bared and hands turned into fists. A part of her instantly thought he looked hot, her easy-going skeleton turning into a rabid animal to protect her. 

“F..fuck you ALL!”

Tiffany turned, frozen in place, Scott might have been hurting but not down for the count. He waved the gun barrel from one end of the room to the other. Blood dripping from his body and face pale. Blue slid himself to the side, practically shielding (Y/N) from Scott.

“Kill him!” she yelled, forgetting that was something Tiffany Levine would say, not Tiffany Loves. She was breaking character but didn’t care. She just wanted the crazy twerp dead.

It was a mistake, her words instantly drew the shaky gun and hate filled eyes. She could see him taking aim with a body barely able to stay upright, but she didn’t move.

_Don’t move, one of your skeletons will save you, Sans will save you. _

Those seconds though stretched into forever as she noticed something, everyone was taking a step away from her. No one was raising a wall of bones or throwing another attack at Scott. They were just standing there, why the hell were they just-

**BANG!**

You flinched under Blue, his grip gentle but firm as he kept you in place under him when the gunshot pierced your ears. From what you could barely make out, Scott collapsed backwards, his own gun firing throwing him back down the stairs. There were sounds of a tumble and screams, you were pretty sure the fall with being impaled had just killed him.

“D.. did someone get shot?” you muttered, feeling Blue’s weight finally lift off you as he scanned the surroundings.

“Yes,” Blue said simply, turning to gaze at the other side of the room, expression neutral. That’s when you saw her, Tiffany laying on the floor with blood soaking her stomach. No one was moving, everyone else was just staring down at her as the blood stain got larger. You’d almost swear time was frozen with how stark still everyone was.

_Mr. Levine, I promise you I’ll try everything I can to get her back to you alive…_

“SHIT!” you shouted, scrambling from under Blue, your cursing and movements taking him by surprise. You were too busy running towards Tiffany to notice, pulling your shirt off and placing it over the wound. The smell of blood strong in the air as your shirt became another casualty of ugly red stains. 

“Someone call nine-one-one!” you yelled, looking at Tiffany’s face. Her breathing was fast and the skin normally a healthy tan color was now pale. You didn’t know what to do, you weren’t a doctor or nurse. 

“Just let her die kid.”

You turned to Sans and saw even Tiffany incline her head slightly. The disgust couldn’t be more evident on his face as he glared at the dying girl.

_He knows…_

You don’t know how he knew it all, Tiffany targeting and using him, but he knew. From the way every other skeleton stood back, making no motion to help, he wasn’t the only one. None of that mattered though.

“I’m not letting someone die just because they’re a bad person,” you said, finding Sans go from glaring at her to staring at you. You ignored him, trying to stay determined as you clumsily pulled out your phone with one hand while still using the other to press your shirt on the bleeding.

“I.. I made a promise to her dad. I said I’d get her back to him alive. I know she doesn’t deserve it, but I’m not just… not..”

Why was it so damn hard to dial nine-one-one on your phone? It was the blood, God the blood every where including on your fingers. Making them slippery and hard to press numbers. You could literally feel her dying under your hand. Suddenly another bigger hand covered yours, blue light glowing from the wound.

“I’ll Use My Gravity Magic To Stop The Bleeding (Y/N). Just Concentrate On Calling For The Ambulance,” Blue said, the words coming to your right ear from behind as you smelled his minty breath.

“Blue are you kidding me! You should want her dead even more then me! WHY?!” Sans nearly screamed, looking ready to tackle both of you. Blue rested his chin on your shoulder, his gaze still focusing on the injury below him.

“Because His My Friend And Needs Me,” he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Then another hand came to rest on the body, now making it a hand pile. Phalanges not nearly as thick, but longer and more elegant. And now there was a green glow with blue.

“MY HEALING MAGIC SHOULD ALSO HELP CLOSE THE WOUND. (Y/N) HOW ARE YOU DOING WITH CALLING FOR HELP?”

“I’m good, yes hello! I need an ambulance here,” you said, finding it hard to look at the two skeletons practically cuddled against you. Even harder to look at Sans who stared at all of you with jaw dropping, before he shouted simply one word.

“BROTHER!?”

“I’M SORRY SANS, (Y/N) IS RIGHT, WE SHOULDN’T LET SOMEONE DIE JUST BECAUSE THEY’RE A BAD PERSON. I KNOW YOU WANT THE BOND BROKEN, BUT THIS… ISN’T THE WAY. WE’LL FIND A BETTER WAY,” Papyrus said with pleading eyes. The answer wasn’t good enough, it was obvious from San’s grimace as he disappeared in a blink of an eye.

“I’ll track vanilla down, make sure he doesn’t get into trouble,” Red said, popping out of existence as well. 

“I’LL ESCORT THE RESPONDERS IN, MUTT GO CHECK ON THE OTHER ONE AT THE STAIRS,” Black said, walking towards the front door. 

“Yes m’lord.”

Everyone appeared to do something. Edge was calling the ambassador and royal family to explain what happened. Mutt had returned only a minute later to say Scott was dead, no one even tried to appear sad about it. And soon Black came in with the emergency responders. Tiffany had passed out by then, being lifted up to a gurney and rolled out.

All of you watched her escorted out, Black offering to accompany them and answer any questions they had. 

“(Y/N) Are You Ok? You Have A Lot of Blood On You,” Blue said, rubbing your shoulder. You stared dumbly from him to your own body. The blood had stained you everywhere from your hands to your naked torso. It looked like someone took a giant red paintbrush and went crazy on you.

“It’s not mine.”

“Yes, I Know That (Y/N),” Blue said, forehead wrinkling in concern. He wasn’t the only one, the other skeletons were also watching you. Why were they all looking at you like that? Was it the blood? Skeletons didn’t have blood, maybe they thought it was weird to see.

“Blue Could You Please Take (Y/N) Upstairs For a Shower. Me And Edge Will Stay Here To Speak With The Police And Ambassador,” Papyrus said, getting a nod from his edgy twin.

“I’ll find some clean clothes for the kid,” Mutt said in a rare moment of volunteering to do something. He gave you a wink before disappearing. You didn’t have a chance to think about it too much, Blue already had a large arm around your waist, gently escorting you to the stairs. You found your head leaning on his broad shoulder, cheek feeling warm against the black fabric of his shirt. Nothing was said until you got inside the bathroom.

“Are You Ok With Me Helping You Out of Your Clothes?” Blue asked, still appearing worried. Those wrinkles hadn’t disappeared from his forehead. You nodded, the response instantly leading to phalanges undoing your pants from behind and pulling down. There was no sexual teasing or flirting, the skeleton’s movements appeared simply gentle and efficient. Before you knew it, you found yourself naked and shivering slightly. 

Blue was already turning on the water faucet, shower head spraying out. He tested the water for a minute before nodding with approval, steam rising from the floor.

“OK, IN YOU GO,” Blue said with a gesture, old grin in place. It made you smile as well for a second. The smile disappeared as you saw how much redder the shower room got with you in it. Blood and water flowing down to the floor then to the drain.

You jumped startled a little as a washcloth rubbed your back, feeling Blue make circular motions with his hand on you.

“I’M JUST GOING TO HELP YOU WASH THIS TIME, BUT LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT ME TO LEAVE,” Blue said, going from back to stomach. He had taken his own shirt off, revealing a thick body made of white flesh. 

“I.. I’m good with you.. staying,” you said, and nearly winced at how out of it you sounded. You just felt like you were in a daze as you watched his hand move up and down your body. Dark red marks being washed away as if they had never been there.

You couldn’t stop staring at his face even if you were getting borderline creepy. The way he appeared to concentrate on every swipe, careful in his care like he was cleaning a delicate piece of glass. It was the wrong expression. He should have a different look on his face. It was finally hitting you what you did to him. He shouldn’t be looking at you with kindness.

“Why don’t you hate me?”

Blue nearly dropped the washcloth, eyes widening.

“Why…”

“I just helped save Tiffany. I.. got you to help me save Tiffany! She killed Stretch and I saved her! You should hate me!” you said, voice rising. The tears would be more evident if you weren’t under a flowing shower. Blue cocked his head to the side before speaking, setting the washcloth aside.

“Why Did You Try To Save Her?”

“Because I promised her dad and.. I just didn’t want anyone to die! Ok! I didn’t want anyone to die Blue! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry-“

Thick arms wrapped around you, your face burying itself into his chest. You’d swear you saw a glimmer of white light between the thick bones, but by then you didn’t care. You were sobbing now, the tears very obvious. You even ended up smearing snot onto him, God what an ugly sight you must make. He just held you firmly though, white muscles keeping you against him as he rocked you against him.

“Don’t Ever Apologize For Being You. I Thought We Already Settled That,” Blue whispered in your ear, stroking your wet hair. The phalanges moving through it sent a shiver of pleasure down your spine. You finally wiped your face with one wet hand, looking up. You knew you looked like crap, puffy eyes and stuffy nose. And he appeared handsome as usual, blue eye lights wonderful to see up close. You didn’t even think of what you did next.

You wrapped your arms around his neck pulling him down, seeing eye lights getting even bigger as he realized what was happening. He didn’t stop you though as your lips clumsily touched his, a second later his white lips responded. He turned the kiss from clumsy to possessive, blue tongue entering your mouth as he dipped your head back.

You felt one of his phalanges lightly caress your naked back as the tongue leisurely took it’s time touching your own tongue. Finally after what felt like forever he pulled back, another phalange wiping spit off your bottom lip.

“We Take It Slow.”

You blinked and looked up, brain still addled by what just happened. Blue was grinning again, maybe feeling proud at what affect he had on you.

“WE TAKE IT SLOW, ASSUMING YOU WANT TO DO THIS AGAIN. I… Don’t Want To Risk Messing This Up,” Blue nearly whispered the last words, phalanges now stroking your cheeks as he stared into your eyes. You swallowed before finally speaking.

“I.. do want to do it again, but yeah- I want to go slow,” you said, seeing the grin widen with your words.

“Have another flower delivery dear!”

“Thanks Mom,” Tiffany said with a roll of her eyes, seating in her wheelchair. The wheelchair she’d be seating in for the rest of her life because she lost feeling in her legs.

Her mother walked into the living room, exotic jet-black hair like her but with pale skin.

“Here you go sweety,” she said, dropping off flowers and a card. The smile on her face was fake, but she was going to put on a nice appearance as long as her dad was at the house. Dad already talked to her about how the two were getting a divorce and now the bitch was pissed because she thought it was Tiffany’s fault. Like she meant to get freaking shot. How did her getting shot even make Dad grow a spine and demand a divorce?

“Yeah thanks,” Tiffany said, response just as insincere as she stared at the flowers. They were violets and just like their name, they were a deep purple. After learning in detail Black’s tastes, her instincts instantly screamed this was from him. She waited until her mother left before taking the card under the flowers with shaky hands.

When she opened it, she saw signatures from all the skeletons- except for Sans. And a single phrase under the signatures.

**Don’t ever come back.**

The words instantly made her think of her last memory when she was shot. How she was laying on the floor bleeding and the skeletons were all just staring at her from above. Not one single phalange lifting to help, just staring down at her as she was dying.

“You think you can just pretend I never existed,” she muttered darkly scratching her chest. She still felt it, three soul bonds which still existed. Three connections which told her the general direction of where Sans, Mutt, and Edge where at this very moment.

“I’m not someone who just disappears quietly.”

“OK, ARE YOU READY BOYFRIEND?” Blue asked, loving using the word 'boyfriend'. (Y/N) gave him permission to call him it a month after they dated. It felt nice using the word and realizing it was real this time. The guy in front of him was his boyfriend.

They were both naked on (Y/N)’s bed, he insisted they do it the first time at the guesthouse. He didn’t want to do it at the same bed where he touched Tiffany, it was silly of course. He knew he’d get over it, he just wanted nothing to ruin the feeling of how special this moment would be.

“Yeah, it’s just.. you sure nothing will go wrong?” you asked, frowning in worry.

“NO, AS LONG AS THE WARD IS ON YOUR SKIN, THERE’S NO CHANCE WE’LL SOUL BOND,” Blue said, patient in repeating the explanation. He couldn’t blame (Y/N) for being concerned considering how quickly a certain other human ended up soul bonded with so many.

“And it won’t um like rub off?”

“IT WOULD TAKE A BIT OF EFFORT TO GET RID OF IT, YOU WOULD HAVE TO SCRATCH IT OFF HARD. BUT I HAVE AN IDEA,” Blue said, edging closer and lifting up your face with one phalange under your chin.

“We Do It With You Lifted Up In The Air, Legs Around My Waist. No Worries Of It Being Rubbed Off,” Blue said softly, feeling a stirring between his legs. The way your face flushed up, Blue was certain you found the idea exciting too. He nodded, it was all the gesture Blue needed before grabbing your neck and pulling you forward.

Large mouth grabbed yours, large blue tongue thrusting forward greedily. Blue knew you loved how big he was- larger mouth, larger tongue, and a very large cock swelling up between his legs. He didn’t need to look down to know a blue glowing appendage appeared between his legs, growing bigger by the second.

You felt it though as he pulled you onto his lap, one of your hands eagerly rubbing it. Blue groaned in approval as he grinded it against your stomach. This was not the first time you had been naked and exploring each other. Blue wanted to make sure you were totally comfortable with his body before they took this step.

You yelped a little when he lifted you up like you were nothing, knees digging into the mattress. He found it adorable and gave you a searing kiss on the neck before finally pulling back his head. Sticking one phalange in his mouth, he pulled a glob of glowing spit. Carefully he used the drenched phalange to make a small circle on your bare shoulder.

Three months of dating before you agreed to this, you both took it slow like agreed upon. And the ward he just placed on your body would stop any soul bonding from happening. You viewed it like marriage, you viewed it the right way. Blue wondered how long it would be before you were ready for it. Maybe a year, some people dated that long before marrying. It didn’t matter, he could be patient.

Anticipation rushed through Blue’s soul as you wrapped your legs as best you could around his thick waist. Black’s exercises making your muscles healthy and flexible. He felt your own cock snugly rubbing against his stomach, glad his so-called bones were actual flesh which shouldn’t hurt it.

His own glowing cock was aimed straight up, practically begging to thrust into the hole above. No need for lube, with a thought his cock was covered in blue gooey substance. He felt it snuggled against your pucker hole and for the first-time slight fear was in your eyes.

“Just Tell Me To Stop If It Hurts,” Blue whispered, softly biting your ear. It wouldn’t, with his magic he could will the appendage to make pleasure flow through you. This would feel nothing like what a human’s cock would, your body was going to feel something wonderful and he couldn’t wait to see the look on your face.

For the sake of you feeling safe though he went slow, head of cock pushing in. You grabbed tighter, your own cock grinding against him as you kissed him. He distracted you with his tongue, your mind not even realizing his cock was already mostly inside you. Finally he pulled away, grinning as he gave your naked figure a good groping.

“AND NOW THE FUN BEGINS.”

Beefy thighs flexed and pushing it in, by the Stars you were so tight. He never asked if he was your first, but he knew it now for sure. Yes he was definitely your first, the thought made him almost jack hammer into you. He was supposed to start slow, but he wanted you to feel it. Feel all of him claiming you hard and fast.

“B.. Blue, feels good…”

Oh you poor human, pleasure making you tongue tied and lose all your senses. He might be going a little overboard using magic to push pleasure into you. He wasn’t going to stop now though, slapping sounds filled the air as his blue meaty cock look like it was practically getting sucked into the tight hole. Your cheeks were flushed, your grip on him loose as you laid your head on his shoulder.

He felt the warm liquid on his stomach, grinning proudly at how quickly he made you cum.

“S.. sorry, tried to..”

“DON’T WORRY BOYFRIEND, WE’LL GET YOU TO DO IT AGAIN,” Blue said, his breathing turning into panting. He could feel blue sweat roll off his skull. Your half-hard cock already full-on erect again. Blue’s mouth went to your neck again, teeth grazing the skin. He might not be able to soul bond you yet, but there was a different way of claiming you.

He pressed his teeth in, waiting for any sound of pain. Instead you moaned in pleasure, clawing at his back. His mouth smiled even with it sucking and biting against your flesh. Finally he lifted up to admire his handy work, a couple of bite marks which should stay there for at least a couple of weeks. He could always renew them later.

His attention turned to his thrusting, his pace shortened, he soon did less thrusting and more grinding. Keeping his powerful blue meat in you, Stars it felt so good. He never had it wrapped so tightly, so much pressure on it. The pleasure and pressure stretched from his appendage to up his spine, he arced his back, grunting like an animal. His eye lights turned from glowing to flaring, you were screaming his name. He wanted it, he wanted it so bad, as if hearing his thoughts the cock exploded. He was filling you, drool dripped from his chin, all he could feel was what was happening between his legs.

More warm liquid against his stomach. Your scream turning into a moan of his name, maybe even begging of his name. He had pushed you so hard, pushed himself. With that thought, he pulled himself half-way out, not able to speak. He didn’t have lungs, but Stars was he having trouble getting air. Everything felt hot and wet at the same time. 

Feeling dazed to say the least, Blue looked down to see a puddle of blue goo drenching the bed. You weren’t able to take it all, much of it leaking now that he pulled out a little. His flesh had a shimmer of blue sweat, more sweat then he ever exerted before. He was almost glowing with it.

“Blue… tired…”

Blue couldn’t stop the chuckle, were you always going to talk like a caveman when they had sex? He stroked your hair with phalanges, kissing your cheek.

“I’M GOING TO PULL OUT NOW BOYFRIEND,” Blue said, giving you a minute to prepare. Then he withdrew it all, his glowing cock slipping and collapsing onto the bed. It looked for lack of a better word, spent. Twitching on occasion, but otherwise just laying there like a lazy snake. With enough effort and pull of magic he could make it hard again. 

Of course you’d probably run or maybe in this case crawl to get away from him if he even thought of doing that. Even he wasn’t so dense to not know you were spent yourself. He saw more blue goo dripping from your hole as he laid you on your side, not able to stop grinning. Seeing you marked by both his ecto-magic and bites made him feel like he truly made his claim on you.

“I’M GOING TO GET FRESH SHEETS AND A TOWEL BOYFRIEND,” Blue said, kissing your forehead. This would normally be the part where you’d insist on helping, but it looks like you were on the edge of passing out.

As he gathered the sheets and towels in the closet, his mind finally went to the only other time his been with a human. He swore to himself he wouldn’t think of her during your own time together, but now that it was done- he couldn’t stop himself from at least making a brief comparison.

The soul bonding should have made the sex more enjoyable with Tiffany, but it was nothing like with you. Never before had he felt himself lose such control. Maybe it was because she had so many soul bonds? Or maybe because this time the emotional bonds between the two of you were much more sincere?

“Forget Her,” Blue whispered to himself as he headed back to the bed. Still though, it was a little scary. If it was like that with a ward, just how intense would it be when you did soul bond?

He gave you an hour to rest before carrying you to a chair so he could clean and change the bed. From there it was taking a shower together and then making some lunch. The whole time you looked buzzed. For the first time you acted lazy, letting him do all the work to make lunch. A smile on your lips as you just watched him. He liked that smile, he hoped to see it more.

A knock on the door interrupted you both before you could take bites into the sandwiches. (Y/N) went to open the door, smile still in place, but it disappeared when you saw the visitor. It was Sans, with his usual slouchy posture.

“Hey sorry kid, just came by to ask something,” Sans said with a smile, but he took a step back when he glanced over at Blue. Blue knew he was giving off the scary hollow look, but damn it! This was supposed to be your day together, everyone was supposed to know the two of you wanted to be alone today including Sans.

Then the skeleton sniffed the air and that’s when his cheeks started glowing blue.

“Oh I um I see I interrupted something, I’ll just um come back later.”

“It’s fine Sans. I know you wouldn’t come unless it was important,” you said, rubbing your forehead.

“Well yeah, but a soul bonding moment-“

“-we didn’t soul bond. We um used a ward,” you said and Blue quickly moved. He had an arm on your shoulder, giving you a squeeze. He could tell you were uncomfortable talking about it. 

“SOUL BONDING IS A SERIOUS EVENT. SOMETHING WE DECIDED SHOULD WAIT UNTIL WE’VE BEEN TOGETHER MUCH LONGER,” Blue said, pulling you against him. He needed to do everything both verbally and physically to send the message- he wanted this too, he supported you in it. He never wanted you to feel ashamed or pressured because you wanted to wait.

Sans was looking from you to Blue, his smile was back. It was different though, in fact something about it made Blue think he looked… envious.

“You know the first time I did it with Tiffany I gave her a ward on her hip.”

Blue could feel (Y/N) tense slightly next to him. Blue himself felt like he was thrust into unknown territory. This was the first time he heard Sans talk about her. Papyrus begged him to go to therapy just like Blue, to get help for the things Tiffany put him through. He just waved it off though.

And the second anyone tried to have a serious talk with him about Tiffany, he just shortcutted away. Even when it was his own brother, he would just disappear. Everyone soon gave up, knowing they couldn’t force the subject on him.

“What happened?” you asked hesitantly, probably not sure if you were allowed to ask.

“She scratched it right before I orgasmed in her. Swore it was an accident, how I was so good she lost control of her body. Stupid lie to believe in, right?” Sans asked with a sad chuckle.

“We all believed her lies Sans. And I don’t think I ever thought you were stupid.”

It was the right thing to say, Blue noticed San’s smile become more sincere. He found himself a little jealous though, once again it was supposed to be your day together. And his twin was here drawing attention to himself.

“COUSIN WHAT WAS THE QUESTION YOU HAD?” Blue asked, no longer caring if his words made him appear rude. He felt his human rub his back so maybe he felt impatient too.

“Well (Y/N) you cut off my access to the machine. The codes changed, no one will give it to me. Also I can’t teleport into the basement.”

“Correct.”

“You gonna tell me why kid?”

“You already know the answer,” you said with a sigh. You lifted up a hand and placed it on San’s shoulder. Now Blue was the one who tensed up, Sans wasn’t exactly safe to touch. Anyone could see the skeleton’s mind and soul were still coping with Tiffany’s handy work. It was a big irony of Blue being the one worried considered how his mental state used to be.

“I promise I’ll do everything I can to help you try to break the soul bond, but I can’t let you try to use the machine to do it. It’s too dangerous Sans,” you said. Blue’s eyes widen as he realized what was going on. Sans must have been looking into repeating the incident of teleporting Tiffany to the void. Hoping to get his bond broken as well on a second try.

“Wouldn’t be an issue if you let her die.”

Sans frowned as soon as he said the words, regret written on his face. You swallowed pulling your hand away, but Sans caught it with his own. Blue found himself growling, the rumbling sound going up his throat to between his teeth. The lazier version ignored it though, giving your hand a squeeze.

“Sorry kid, I shouldn’t have said that. I know you’ll help. You keep your promises, I actually like that about you,” Sans said, finally letting your hand go.

“I try,” you said, snuggling a little into Blue. 

“Well I’ll leave you two love birds alone. Peace,” Sans said with a salute and smile back in place, disappearing.

“He took it better than expected.”

“Yes, I’m Really Proud Of You,” Blue said, pulling you into a full hug. You put your face in the crook of his neck, taking a deep breath.

“Hmmm?”

“You Stopped Him Even Though It Might Mean A Confrontation. You’ve Really Gotten Braver,” Blue said, rubbing your back.

“You’ve changed too, in good ways,” you said raising your head, getting rewarded with a soft kiss.

“Of Course, I Have You,” Blue said with a grin. In the back of his mind, he wondered if he should bring it up. How there were others who wanted you- Black, Papyrus, and Red. He decided against it though, you already knew after all. It wasn’t like they were being subtle. 

He considered himself lucky you chose him. Part of him wanted you all to himself but having multiple mates could lead to you being happier and safer. He knew he could share, monsters might get jealous but they could adapt to sharing intimacy much better compared to humans. In the end he wouldn’t encourage it, but also wouldn’t prevent it. He’ll let you take the lead if those three started pushing. You always showed better judgement compared to him anyway.

With that last thought Blue gave you another kiss, this time lifting you off your feet. 

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So let me first start out by saying I am a reverse-harem reader undertale reader fan like many of you. Starting all the way back with that Land Lady and her skeletons she hung out with in the country. But as I read more and more of them I found certain... outlines being followed. Repeated approaches where sometimes it felt like I was reading the same story as before. You want to know those outlines? Read Full Deck by Sons_of_Sirens. I mean I thought I was making fun of reversed harem novels but it's nothing compared to what that story does.  
I'm hoping this story inspires others to add their own twist to a reverse harem story. No the protagonist does not need to be a pun fan (seriously most of us don't use puns). No the protagonist doesn't have to enter romance with ALL FREAKING EIGHT OF THE SKELETONS. I mean jeez that's like a fiction nightmare, no wonder there's so many unfinished works. Anyway I hope you enjoyed this story.  
I left opportunity for a sequel but right now I need to finish the work Hindsight. I left it on the back burner to finish this one. And I have no clue what fandom I'll feel like writing about when I'm done with that work. I'll just have to see my state of mind afterwards. Anyway thanks for the comments, they actually gave me ideas on the writing. Because of some of those comments, this story was changed from it's original planned form. Wish you all fun writing and reading, peace!


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